Tennis Channel to Air Documentary about Roland Garros

In honor of the eightieth anniversary of the Stade Roland Garros, the home of the French Open, Tennis Channel plans to air a film about the history behind the tournament.

The special documentary is scheduled for this Thursday, May 29, at 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT.

Produced by London’s Media House, it will be the first time A History – A Story of Roland Garros will appear on U.S. television. It airs during the network’s comprehensive coverage of the sport’s second Grand Slam of the calendar and most prestigious clay-court competition in the sport.

Since its 1928 debut, Stade Roland Garros has been the majestic home of the annual French Open, one of tennis’ four major tournaments, which began in 1891.

A History – A Story of Roland Garros captures everything that makes the soft, auburn-tinged clay that defines the French Open and its champions special. The hour-long documentary chronicles the stadium from its storied debut as the stomping grounds to France’s perennial Davis Cup-power “The Four Musketeers” in the late 1920s, through eight decades of pageantry in which every star in tennis took his or her shot at Grand Slam glory, to the spring rite of passage that has turned the red clay into a virtual playground for today’s French Open-unbeaten Rafael Nadal and recently-retired Justine Henin.

Along the way the famous names who left their mark in the famed tournament “dirt” are recounted – Rene Lacoste, Suzanne Lenglen, Guillermo Vilas, Bjorn Borg, Chris Evert, Yannick Noah, Steffi Graf and others – as is the event’s contribution to the cultural, political and fashion landscapes.

“The French Open at Stade Roland Garros has become synonymous with so many different images: springtime, clay-court tennis, triumph, Paris, the French fans,” said Victoria Quoss, executive vice president, programming and network strategy. “We’re excited to show Tennis Channel viewers the essence behind these hallowed grounds and how the greatest stars in the game’s history have fared here.”

This is the second year of Tennis Channel’s ground-breaking French Open coverage, which includes close to 100 hours of live match telecasts and nightly, three-and-half hour prime-time show French Open Tonight anchored by Bill Macatee.

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