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To Americans it is time for the French Open, but for the French they are geared up for Roland Garros. The official name of the second of the Grand Slam tennis events is Les internationzux de France de Roland-Garros, sometimes shortened to Tournoi de Roland-Garros. The tournament is named for the stadium in which it is played which in turn is named after a famous French aviator . Whatever name they use, the international championship held in Paris each spring is one of the most challenging and widely viewed tennis tournaments in the world.
The other three tennis Grand Slam events are the Australian Open held each January (which is summer in the southern hemisphere) in Melbourne, Wimbledon which is played from late June through early July in London, and the US Open which takes place in late August and early September in New York. Both the Australian and US Opens are played on hard courts while Wimbledon is played on grass. The French Open is the only grand slam event held on clay, which is widely considered to be the most difficult surface.
Fans searching for french open scores online may not be aware of the importance the French Open has played in tennis history. In addition to offering such a challenging tournament, Roland Garros was the first of the Grand Slams to become an Open tournament. The championships that had begun as a French-only tournament in 1891 and later allowed international players in 1925 first started permitting professional athletes as well as amateurs in 1968. This led to the beginning of the Open Era that continues in international tennis through this day.
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One of the eight charter teams for the American League, the Boston Red Sox have just as interesting a history as franchise, perhaps even more so. Like the other teams formed around the same time, the Red Sox had their share of changes, good seasons, and bad seasons. Fortunately, they never had to change their name and have been at the same ballpark, Fenway Park, since 1912.
Unlike many of the other teams they had another problem to deal with — a curse. ” The Curse of the Bambino ” lasted 86 years; the longest in baseball history . The story begins with Boston dominating the World Series. They won five times between 1903 and 1918. However, in 1918 they made the fateful decision to trade Babe Ruth to the Yankees; a decision many disagreed with. From that point on the Red Sox were unable to win the ultimate championship — the World Series. That is until 2004 when they swept the St. Louis Cardinals and finally broke the curse. The 2007 World Series win against the Colorado Rockies further ensured that the curse was over and secured the Red Sox as one of the greatest teams of the decade.
Many would assume that going such a long time without a World Series win, despite many attempts, would have negative affects on the teams fan base, but quite the contrary has happened. The Red Sox are one of the leading teams in attendance for away games and fans that want to see a home game should buy tickets well in advance. Fenway Park has a smaller capacity than many of the more recently built parks, but the Red Sox have sold out every single home game since May of 2003 — that’s seven years!
One of the great things about the Red Sox’s long history is the change their uniforms and logos have experienced over the years. Although their colors have stayed the same, the Sox logo and font has changed. When you purchase Boston Red Sox watches with the old logo, it’s like keeping a piece of Red Sox history with you all the time.