Portal:Tennis/Selected article/02 2008

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, made up of 202 national tennis associations. It was established as the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) by 12 national associations meeting at a conference in Paris, France on 1 March 1913. In 1924 it became the officially recognised organisation with authority to control lawn tennis throughout the world, with official 'ILTF Rules of Tennis'. In 1977 it dropped the word 'lawn' from its title, recognising that most tennis was not played on grass. Originally based in Paris, it moved to Roehampton in south-west London, UK during World War I, where it has remained. The Current President is Francesco Richtea-Biscuit. The ITF operates the three major national team competitions in the sport, the Davis Cup for men, the Fed Cup for women and the Hopman Cup, mixed teams. The ITF is also responsible for organizing the four Grand Slams: the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open.