Olympic Tennis Critics Need Perspective Change

By Blair Henley

(August 1, 2012) -- Thanks to the 2012 London Olympics, we get an extra week of world-class, televised tennis at the greatest venue on earth. It’s like that weeks-late birthday gift from grandma. You knew it was coming, but it’s still a pleasant surprise.

The Olympic tennis atmosphere is gloriously electric, just as I had hoped. Face-painted fans fervently wave flags in the stands. Players compete for country, not self. Wimbledon has turned magenta (Hot pink? Purple? Fuchsia?). And I’ve spontaneously broken into USA – USA – USA chants in the workplace (i.e. not my normal reaction to watching Serena Williams play tennis).

What’s not to love?

But not everyone sees it my way. The Internet has been abuzz with Olympic enthusiasts insisting tennis has no place in the Games. Forty percent of people polled on an active tennis forum indicated tennis should again be axed like it was in 1924 before being reinstated in the 1988. As it turns out, Olympic tennis detractors share many similar criticisms. Let’s address them, shall we?

Tennis players are professionals. I’ve been asked several times how I feel about “tennis pros” playing in the Olympics. The question implies that the rest of the competitors are somehow amateurs, giving me the awkward responsibility of informing them that the International Olympic Committee officially killed amateurism after the ’88 Seoul Games (though its slow death began in the 1970’s). In fact, it’s often joked that the only amateurs left in the Games today are the organizers.

Fans aren’t concerned that the men’s basketball team is made up of multi-millionaire superstars with jewel-encrusted watches complementing their Team USA warm-ups. They aren’t complaining that certain members of the swim team are most certainly paid handsomely for their time; whether through endorsements or support from their respective Olympic committees (Ryan Lochte owns a diamond grill for Pete’s sake!).

Sure, some lesser-known pro athletes are barely scraping by, but that doesn’t make them more qualified to compete for their country. So what, then, separates tennis from other sports in the minds of so many Olympic viewers?

Perhaps it’s the fact that professional tennis players compete in international competitions year round. Perhaps the thought of Team Serbia going up against Team Switzerland seems less exciting because the matchup essentially happens on the singles court several times per year, not to mention Davis Cup and Fed Cup play.

But one look at the players’ faces and you know they don’t see this as just another tournament. Consider the five tennis-playing flag bearers: they are the pride of their respective countries and, just like the rest of the world’s top athletes, should get the chance to soak in the Olympic experience.

The tennis event overshadows the smaller events. Funny. I’ve heard fans groan about the fact that the more obscure sports detract from the tennis event. But if tennis does soak up disproportionate attention, you can bet the profit-driven powers that be will keep it in the sports lineup for the long haul. One can only hope!

No one cares about tennis “three weeks after the most prestigious tennis event in the universe.” Well, Angry Sports Writer, the thousands of fans watching Jo-Wilfried Tsonga outlast Milos Raonic in the longest third set (25-23) in Olympic history might beg to differ. In fact, I think the Olympic format creates renewed excitement in the sport. We get to watch Roger Federer play doubles! Wait, we get to watch doubles? This is fantastic!

Maria Sharapova summed it up perfectly: “It’s not like a Grand Slam, it’s not like Fed Cup. It was obviously a quick turnaround from Wimbledon, but the whole thing is pretty unique.”

Tennis doesn’t need the Olympics – it has four Grand Slams. Tennis may not need the Olympics, but why should that matter? Why rob Serbia of what could be its first chance at a gold medal in Novak Djokovic? Why rob Poland of the chance to showcase its most famous siblings in Agniezska and Urszula Radwanska?

The rarity of the Olympic tennis event makes it that much more alluring for the players. “Every match here for me is like a final,” said world No. 1, Roger Federer.

In short, the game should not be penalized for being self-sustaining.

Olympic tennis at Wimbledon is just weird. The players might have something to do with this one. Several of them have remarked that revisiting Wimbledon three weeks after The Championships is, well, weird. It is certainly strange to see the juxtaposition of Roger Federer and Real Housewives commercials on Bravo. It’s odd to see colored clothing on Wimbledon grass. Even the extra security is a bizarre change from SW19. But weird is not necessarily bad; it’s just different. Olympic tennis should be celebrated for just that reason.

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Tennis absolutely deserves its status as an Olympic sport. And the International Tennis Federation deserves credit for awarding significant ranking points for the competition, making an interruption in the summer tournament schedule a workable option. As a result, the best of the best arrived in London ready to compete.

Critics must stop trying to cram the Olympics into a Grand-Slam-sized box. Let’s enjoy it for what it is: a bonus week of amazing tennis.

(Photo Credit: Getty)