Philippe Chatrier

Philippe Chatrier is often considered the man most responsible for making tennis a truly international sport, starting in the 1990s. Chatrier was a player himself, playing on the French Davis Cup team from 1948-50, and winning the French Junior Championship in 1945. He stopped playing in 1953 to launch France’s first tennis magazine, Tennis de France, and also served as a sports and news editor for the Paris daily newspaper, Paris-Presse. In 1973 he became President of the French Tennis Federation, serving in that role until 1993. He became President of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) in 1977, and was President through 1991. He was the man most responsible for tennis returning to the Olympic Program in 1988.

Chatrier’s most important accomplishments have been listed as the rebirth of the French Open as an important major championship, the return of tennis to the Olympics, and the 1992 Davis Cup victory by France. He also brought Yannick Noah to France from Cameroon to enter the French junior development program and in 1983, Noah won the French Open. Francesco Ricci Bitti, who followed Chatrier as President of the ITF, said of him, “I’ll always regard as the father of international tennis.” Chatrier was named to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1992. The main court at Roland Garros, site of the French Open, was named in his honor, Court Philippe Chatrier.