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Clijsters’ crowd call out turns into good fun at Wimbledon
Wimbledon is the epitome of class in tennis. Staid, professional, and very British in its sense
of propriety and place. There is no noise, other than the whack-pock of the ball and the
grunt of the players as they connect with it. There is no levity, only carefully cultivated
seriousness with a healthy dose of respect for one’s opponent. All of that was showcased at
this year’s Wimbledon matches. There was formidable Venus Williams vying to become the
oldest woman to win a major. Roger Federer re-established his dominance on the grass,
winning Wimbledon for a record eight times. Federer also managed to win without losing a
set, the first man to achieve this since Bjorn Borg way back in 1976.
Clijsters Shows Off
But none of this was the biggest headline coming out of Wimbledon 2017. With apologies to
Garbine Muguruza, who battled Williams hard in the first set, then whipped her in the
second, the biggest story to come out of Wimbledon this year involved a chubby fan in a

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skort. And it wasn’t even on Centre Court. In the Ladies’ Invitational, Kim Clijsters was
playing off the audience, asking where she should place her serve – wide or down the
middle? A guy in the crowd – you know the sort – shouted out “body” … and things got quiet
… at least for a moment.
Clijsters called back, telling the man, if he wanted a body shot, he should come down and
take it. The man, not the least in tennis shape, but game enough no matter what, came
down on the court and hefted a racquet. Clijsters smiled … and then she grinned. The hefty
gentleman was, in fact, not dressed in anything close to the all-white code enforced on the
grass, so she went and grabbed a kit from her own bag.
Being a Good Sport
Mr. Body squeezed himself into her outfit, and the crowd began to titter and cheer. Clijsters
herself was overcome, laughing herself off her feet. And there he was, ready as he would
ever be for his Wimbledon moment. Clijsters recovered enough to send a serve as
requested, right at the body. The crowd roared when he actually managed to return serve.
Clijsters, laughing, served again, and the man sent this one back into the net to lose the
point.
The diversion over, the player and the fan met at midcourt to hug and grab a quick photo
before he returned to his seat. Sports media and social media loved the moment just as
much as that Wimbledon crowd, and there’s no doubt people will remember – and likely
tune in – this time next year.