Wimbledon underway in sweltering conditions
LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) - Wimbledon sprang into life on Monday as the world's oldest tennis tournament opened its gates to thousands of spectators who had queued up for hours in the gentle morning sunshine.
Latecomers can expect more challenging conditions with a heatwave likely to peak when the action begins at the All England Club in what meteorologists predict could be the hottest start to the Championships in history.
The mercury is expected to rise, eclipsing the previous record temperature for the start of the grasscourt Grand Slam in 2001 when players, organisers and ticket-holders were tested by the 29.3 degrees Celsius reading.
Conditions could be more reminiscent of the Australian Open furnace if the heat surpasses Wimbledon's tournament record of 35.7 degrees in 2015.
"Obviously, it's a very warm day," All England Club chief executive Sally Bolton told reporters.
"The first point to make is that the athletes compete in temperatures like this all year on the tour. So for us Brits at the Championships, it feels very hot.
"We do have the heat rule available to us, which again is well used on the tour. So we will be taking heat stress monitor readings half-an-hour before play, at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. today."
Under Wimbledon's heat rule, players are allowed a 10-minute break when the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) is at or above 30.1 degrees Celsius.
One player who usually enjoys the sunshine is defending men's champion Carlos Alcaraz, and the Spaniard begins his bid for a third straight Wimbledon title against Italian veteran Fabio Fognini on Centre Court.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka plays Canadian Carson Branstine on Court One, where big crowds are expected with local Jacob Fearnley playing Brazilian Joao Fonseca before the All-British clash between Emma Raducanu and Mingge Xu.
With the eyes of the world on the tournament and a pro-Palestinian protest taking place outside the grounds, organisers said security officials will be keeping a close eye on proceedings.
"We're expecting protests today, as we've had protests for most years in some way, shape or form," Bolton said.
"That will be managed as it always is outside the grounds. We work closely with the Metropolitan Police on facilitating that. As regards flags, Palestinian flags are not banned.
"It's about ensuring those who have bought a ticket to be on the grounds have the opportunity just to enjoy the tennis."
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