| The Gentlemen's Singles champion receives a silver gilt cup 18.5 inches (about 47 cm) in height and 7.5 inches (about 19 cm) in diameter. The trophy has been awarded since 1887. It bears the inscription: "The All England Lawn Tennis Club Single Handed Champion of the World." The Ladies' Singles champion receives a sterling silver salver commonly known as the "Venus Rosewater Dish," or simply the "Rosewater Dish." The salver, which is 18.75 inches (about 48 cm) in diameter, is decorated with figures from mythology. The winners of the Gentlemen's Doubles, Ladies' Doubles, and Mixed Doubles events receive silver cups. The runner-up in each event receives an inscribed silver plate. The trophies are usually presented by the President of the All England Club, HRH The Duke of Kent, and by his wife, HRH The Duchess of Kent.
At Wimbledon, more prize money is awarded in the Gentlemen's events than in the Ladies' events. This is justified by the rules that men must win 3 out of 5 sets to win a match, whereas women only need to win 2 out of 3. The French Open also offered higher prize money for men until 2006, when it joined the Australian Open and the U.S. Open in offering equal prize money. In 2005, Wimbledon prize money exceeded £10 million (the exact amount was £10,085,510) in total for the first time. The sums awarded to the winners of each of the main events in 2005 are as follows (the amounts shown for the doubles events are per pair):
* Gentlemen's Singles: £650,000
* Ladies' Singles: £625,000
* Gentlemen's Doubles: £218,500
* Ladies' Doubles: £203,250
* Mixed Doubles: £90,000 |
