Yes, it is that fabulous time of year again when for two weeks solid we are glued to our TV sets, admiring backhands and smashes, drooling over the good looking new entrants and going ga-ga for those adorable outfits that continue to surprise us year on year; stock up on your strawberries and cream ladies and gents; Wimbledon has arrived! Oh and ps: its actually sunny this time!

 

I love Wimbledon. I take a sickie every year (shhhh) and spend the day celebrity tennis spotting in South London, smelling the fresh grass and wishing i had concentrated a little more in my tennis lessons of youth. But now, where the attraction is still the tennis; fashion is what is also grabbing the headlines and our attention.

 

The two have always been closely linked and today’s champions are always trying to take fashion on the courts a step further. With the onslaught of beautiful women to the beautiful game, has come competition for not only the best player but also the best dressed.

 

"There aren't many sports where you can wear skirts and dresses. It's only as a tennis player that a female sportswoman can look good. I think I play better when I think I look good." Anna Kournikova, perhaps the first tennis player to become more famous for her fashion campaigns and dating Enrique than her tennis but the beautiful star really brought beauty and fashion to the helm of the tennis scene. Credited with pioneering Cute on the lawn though has got to be frenchwoman (go figure) Mary Pierce. Her all in ones and cute dresses began the trend in the late 90's and disciples Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova have followed suit nicely. This year's "I Feel Pretty" range for Nike has seen her take her tennis play into nighttime play and has bagged Nike a plethora of press.

 

The other beautiful Russian on the circuit is Maria Kirilenko; the chosen one for the face of the Stella McCartney for Adidas campaign and the star doesn't set foot on a court in outfits not designed by the ex Beatles daughter and boy are they hot. Contrasting colours; cute mixed with trendy not to mention performance enduring; fashion on the sports scene has become an industry all of its own. 

 

Having said that there have been a few fashion disasters - Ann White’s 1985 all-in-one white body stocking takes the biscuit for kitsch rock and Venus Williams' split top left little to the imagination at the Aussie Open (I won't post the picture here; ahem!) but for the most part, even with the cool white dress code it imposes, Wimbledon is the last word in uber cool on the courts.

This year its Ralph Lauren who has partnered his name with the famous postcode and has designed ballboy uniforms, so we could be set for the most fashion-concious Wimbledon yet...cant wait!

 

Note: i havent mentioned mens fashion but i do have two words for you: Fred Perry!