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The 4 Grand Slams are the most coveted tennis tournaments in the world offering huge prize money to the competitors. As of 2018, a first-round loser at the US Open walks away with a cool $50,000 in prize money. The winner of the 4 Grand Slams in Chronological Order from the Australian Open to the US Open take home $3.2 million, $2.29 million, $2.9 million and $3.7 million respectively. The total prize money up for grabs crossed the $50 million mark for the first time ever at the 2018 US Open.
It's not just the prize money which drives the players to train hard and compete at the highest level. The ranking points, the title of being labeled a Grand Slam winner and the trophy itself - all play a significant role in being the drivers of motivation among tennis players.
Some Grand Slams notably the Australian Open and the French Open have named the Singles' trophies offered to the winners every year in honor of great champions from the past belonging to the host country. We take a look at 4 Grand Slam titles that are named after legends of yesteryears :
# Suzanne Lenglen Trophy
The only tennis athlete to have a stadium and a trophy named after her is French tennis great Suzanne Lenglen.
The Suzanne Lenglen trophy is awarded to the winner of the Women's Singles competition of the French Open. It was presented for the first time in 1979. A works of art, this trophy was designed by Mellerio dits Meller, famous Parisian jewelers since the 17th century.
The trophy's namesake, Suzanne Lenglen was tennis' first woman superstar. She won 6 French Open trophies - 2 each in Singles, Doubles and Mixed Doubles.
Nicknamed the Goddess, the Frenchwoman on 181 consecutive matches to establish a win-loss record of 341-7 (98%) - a feat which is unimaginable in today's game.
# Musketeers’ Cup
The Musketeers’ Cup (La Coupe des Mousquetaires in French) is awarded to the winner of the men’s singles event of the French Open. The cup was awarded for the first time in 1981 and pays tribute to the four Musketeers of French tennis: Jean Borotra, Jacques Brugnon, Henri Cochet, and René Lacoste.
A silver bowl bordered along with vine leaves at the top and embellished with two swan-shaped handles, the trophy is placed on a marble base in which is inscribed the names of all the winners since 1891.
The then French Tennis President - Philippe Chatrier, a revolutionary tennis administrator had a grand vision to incorporate the achievements of the 4 great French tennis players of the early 20th century. He commissioned the making of the Trophy in 1981. The actual trophy is kept at the museum of the French Tennis Federation and is taken out only once a year. It weighs about 14 kg. Every year a replica is produced taking over 100 man hours to delicately carve the masterpiece. The winner takes home the replica trophy.
# Daphne Akhurst Memorial Trophy
The Daphne Akhurst Memorial Trophy is the 3rd oldest Grand Slam trophy in the world. The trophy is named in honor of the great Australian Women's tennis player - Daphne Akhurst.
Daphne Akhurst won 5 Australian Open Singles titles (1925, 1926, 1928, 1929 and 1930), 5 Australian Open Doubles titles (1924, 1925, 1928, 1929, 1931) and 4 Australian Open Mixed Doubles titles (1924, 1925, 1928, 1929).
Akhurst died from pregnancy related complications at a young age and her death shook the tennis world and a pall of gloom descended on the entire tennis circuit after her demise. Fittingly, Tennis Australia re-named the trophy awarded to the Women's' Singles Champion in her name in 1934. It is the oldest trophy named after a Grand Slam Champion.
Daphne Akhurst was inducted into the Australian Tennis Hall of Fame in 2006 and was also inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2006.
# Norman Brookes Challenge Cup
The Norman Brookes Challenge Cup is the trophy presented to the winner of the Australian Open men's Singles tennis tournament. It is a reduced silver version of the Warwick Vase, one of the most famous antiquities from the 18th century. The original Warwick Vase is composed of marble, and is a colossal scale, standing three metres high.
A former Australian champion and president of the Lawn Tennis Association of Australia from 1926 to 1955, Brookes made history in 1907 becoming the first non-British male to win Wimbledon. Nicknamed 'The Wizard', Sir Norman Brookes won his first Australian Open Singles trophy in 1911 at the age of 34.
The large silver trophy bearing his name was made in England and financed by the state tennis associations in Australia, following the retirement of two previous trophies awarded to the Australian champion – the Slazenger and Sun Cup.
The design for the Sir Norman Brookes Challenge Cup was based on a large Roman marble vase from the secondary AD belonging to the Roman Emperor Hadrian.
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