By Nick Georgandis

Net Notes looks back at the Olympic tennis at the Modern Games. (Read: Olympic Tennis in 1896 and 1900)

1904: St. Louis hosted the Olympics, and the American contingency coasted to every single medal, which was to expected considering 35 of the 36 entrants into the competition were US-born.

When the first official gold medals were handed out, Beals Wright took the men’s singles title, and combined with Edgar Leonard for the doubles crown. Wright was a doubles star, winning the US Open from 1904-1906 and adding the singles title there in 1905.

1908: The games returned to London in 1908, and Great Britain returned to the top of the heap, entering 22 of the tournament’s 50 players and winning the gold in all six events, as competition was held both inside and out for men’s and women’s singles, and in and out for men’s doubles as well.

Reginald Doherty, star of the 1900 Games, returned to take another gold in men’s indoor doubles, teaming with George Hillyard. Arthur Gore was the star of the field, winning the indoor singles title and teaming with Herbert Barret for the doubles, while Josiah Ritchie took the outside men’s singles, Dorothea Chambers the outdoor women’s singles and Gwendoline Eastlake-Smith the indoor singles crown. Gore was 40 at the time of his win, and set a Wimbledon record a year later, taking the singles’ title at age 41.

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