Wimbledon’s dress code caused problems for female players for years and a stunning ace landed herself in hot water when she showed up to SW19 wearing red knickers
A stunning tennis ace once refused to obey Wimbledon’s archaic dress code when she wouldn’t ditch her red knickers during a famous match.
Former French world No.12 Tatiana Golovin won the 2004 French Open mixed-doubles event with Richard Gasquet and enjoyed a run to the singles quarter-finals at the 2006 US Open, losing to the eventual champion Maria Sharapova. And the star, born in Russia, raised lots of eyebrows with her choice of attire at SW19 in 2007.
Plenty of tennis stars had tried to flout the All England Club’s very strict rules on clothing over the years, but few had ever managed to get away with it. British favourite Naomi Broady was forced to play without a bra in 2014, while two junior players had to change their underwear after they were judged to have violated the regulations in 2017.
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Yet Golovin, who turned 38 on Sunday, January 25, defied the rules with her red ensemble when she entered the court wearing bright red-coloured undergarments and a dress with red stitching at the waist.
Given some of the attire that has been rejected at Wimbledon over the years, it would have surprised no-one if the French tennis ace had been told to change before the match.
But according to Reuters, Golovin was given the go-ahead after intense discussions about hemlines and where they stopped and started.
Explaining the decision, a Wimbledon spokesman said at the time: “They were cleared with the referee in advance by the player.
“On the basis that they are underwear, they do not have to conform to the predominantly white rule. If they are above the hemline they are deemed to be underwear and not shorts.”
However, Wimbledon’s dress-code now states something different. According to rules on the tournament’s official website: “Any undergarments that either are or can be visible during play (including due to perspiration) must also be completely white except for a single trim of colour no wider than one centimetre (10mm).”
Golovin addressed the issue of her red knickers after her 5-7, 6-3, 8-6 win over Su-Wei Hsieh. “Can I ask you about your knickers?” came the question from one journalist.
“Such threatening questions right away,” Golovin replied. “I think it’s totally in the dress code. I’ll keep wearing them as long as I keep winning. There’s a little red outline to them. They say red is the colour that proves you are strong and confident, so I’m happy with my red knickers.”
Presumably Golovin didn’t keep wearing them for much longer as she went on to lose to unseeded Austrian Tamira Paszek in the next round.