Full of Color, Wimbledon Finds Footing

(ATR) The president of the International Tennis Federation tells Around the Rings the All England Club looks "even more beautiful than usual" dressed in its Olympics garb.

"It was exciting for all of us to see the planning of seven years come to fruition," says Francesco Ricci Bitti after the opening weekend of play at Wimbledon.

The IOC member from Italy was seated in Centre Court’s Royal Box for Roger Federer’s first-round win, not far from where U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama cheered on Serena Williams earlier Saturday from within her player’s box.

The presidents of Slovakia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic were also in attendance, as was Crown Prince Frederik, an IOC member from Denmark.

Far more headlines focused on who wasn’t there, however, as ticketing no-shows early in Saturday’s order of play made for an unusual sight – a less-than-capacity Centre Court for Williams, the reigning Wimbledon champ.

"We acknowledge that there were some empty seats [Saturday] in Centre and Number One court," admits Ricci Bitti, adding that Centre Court was "packed" for Federer, as were the rest of the grounds.

"We know that there is some concern about empty seats at venues," adds the ITF president, elected in May to head the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations beginning next year.

"While it is important not to overreact, as this is something that every multisport games experiences, it is good that LOCOG is addressing it now."

Slippery Start

Players were quick to find their footing after a slippery start Saturday.

Minutes after the first ball of the Games was struck, Court 18 claimed its first victim with Ana Ivanovic tumbling to the grass.

A pristine Court 1 came into play a half-hour later with fellow Serb Janko Tipsarevic falling on the very first point.

A tense moment followed for tournament organizers – and the Wimbledon groundskeepers charged with repairing the sod less than three weeks after the Championships – as Tipsarevic wanted words with the nearest official.

After a quick exchange drew whistles from the anxious crowd, Tipsarevic went silent, then cruised to an easy win.

The baselines elsewhere didn’t take long to lose their luster – and slipperiness – but not before Williams did the splits twice on the new-look Centre Court.

Dressed for Success

Of course, the Olympic Rings are everywhere – on the nets, the balls, even the hillside formerly known as "Henman Hill" – now "Murray Mount" – where fans famously gather to watch Great Britain’s best title hope.

But gone are the dark green backdrops familiar to any tennis fan with magenta LOCOG’s color of choice.

Also absent are the All England Club’s famous all-white restrictions, though the men seem to be branching out more than the women.

Perhaps the starkest contrast seen so far to the venue’s usual vibe came when the Pet Shop Boys played pump-up tunes from a stage built into a made-over "Murray Mount" prior to the opening of Saturday’s play.

A flash mob followed on the hillside during Centre Court’s first match, though Olympic organizers could have used those fans inside.

Reported by Matthew Grayson

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.