Captain Anthony Wilding was the first and - so far - the only New Zealander to win a Wimbledon championship.
, opens a new windowHis record in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, opens a new window reads:
Career Achievements
Top Ranking
World No. 1 (1911)
Grand Slam Results
11-time major champion and 4-time finalist
Olympics
Bronze Medal in Men’s Indoor Singles at the 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games
Davis Cup
Member of the Australasian Davis Cup Team 1905-1909, 1914
Member of the Australasian Championship Davis Cup Team 1907-1909, 1914
In 1913, while dominating Wimbledon, Wilding won world titles on clay (World Hard Court Championships), grass (World Lawn Tennis Championships) and wood (World Covered Court Championship).
The 'dashing' sportsman
Tennis had been a sport for ‘wealthy gentlemen’, but Anthony Wilding helped it gain greater popularity through his dedication to training and fitness. Former world heavyweight boxing champion Bob
Fitzsimmons - another New Zealander - advised him on his fitness regime so that he ran two or three times a week, skipped, and went for brisk walks, as well as playing tennis. He was much fitter than his opponents, and neither smoked nor drank alcohol (which was unusual for the time).
Described as 'dashing' Tony Wilding had the female spectators swooning because of his 'manly brand of tennis'. He was reported as tall and fair, as well as 'handsome, chivalrous and was always on the lookout for adventure'.
Early Life
, opens a new windowWilding was born at Opawa on October 31, 1883, one of five children of Frederick and Julia Wilding. Frederick Wilding played cricket for New Zealand, was a good horseman, footballer, athlete and oarsman. Sporting interests were strongly encouraged at the family home, Fownhope, and Anthony's sister Cora was also well-known in Christchurch circles as an artist and founder of the Sunlight League of New Zealand. Young Tony excelled at swimming, shooting, riding and cricket, but once he started at Cambridge University in 1902 he became a dedicated tennis player.
Wilding in Europe
Wilding qualified for the New Zealand bar, but didn't work as a lawyer, preferring to motorcycle around Europe, playing in the great tennis tournaments of the Riviera, Germany, Serbia, Hungary, Sweden and Norway. Shortly before the first world war he became a pilot.
When war broke out the British-based Wilding joined the Royal Marines, rising to the rank of captain in the Armoured Car Division, where his pre-war experience of driving in Europe was valued. He was killed aged 31 during the Battle of Aubers Ridge at Neuve Chapelle in northern France, and is buried in Rue-des-Berceaux military cemetery at Pas-de-Calais, France.
The home of Canterbury tennis is, of course, Wilding Park.
More reading
, opens a new window
- Find Anthony Wilding, opens a new window in our collection.
- Our Local History page: Anthony Wilding, opens a new window
- Biographies in Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand , opens a new windowand NZ History, opens a new window
- Sports giants who conquered the world. - Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 257, 31 October 1939, Page 17, opens a new window
- Military record at the Auckland War memorial museum, opens a new window
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