Towel thief Swiatek gets personalised Wimbledon souvenir
Jul 12, 2025; Wimbledon, United Kingdom; Iga Swiatek of Poland speaks at the trophy presentation after winning the women's final match against Amanda Anisimova of the United States on day 13 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images
LONDON - During the Wimbledon fortnight, a grinning Iga Swiatek was often caught on camera cramming dozens of official towels into her tennis bags, creating a running joke that 'Wimbledon's towel thief strikes again!'
On Saturday, Wimbledon marked her love of the towels by presenting the new champion with a personalised purple and green version -- one that can never be taken away from her.
After her 6-0 6-0 thrashing of Amanda Anisimova in the final, Swiatek completed her media duties and then posed for a picture holding up a towel that had the words "Property of Iga Swiatek, Wimbledon Champion" emblazoned on it.
"This one's for keeps," Wimbledon posted on X, alongside a picture of a beaming Swiatek.
Swiatek had said following her opening round victory that tennis players loved their towels.
"It's a topic no one ever talks about," she said.
"Every time I come back from a Grand Slam I have like 10 friends and 10 family members wanting towels. So, sorry guys. Sorry Wimbledon. I don't know if I'm supposed to do that." REUTERS
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
World US slaps 30% tariffs on EU and Mexico; EU warns of countermeasures
Singapore S'pore shows what's possible when digital innovation is matched with purpose: UK foreign secretary
Singapore Casual racism should be tackled by getting more people to understand it is not acceptable: David Neo
Asia Fuel was cut off during take-off: Preliminary report on Air India crash
Singapore Pulling back the curtain: A backstage look at the 2025 NDP show segment
Singapore $3 cashback for hawker centre meals and shopping at heartland stores with DBS PayLah initiative
Singapore Body of 62-year-old man recovered from waters off East Coast Park
Asia Aerobridge hits Qantas plane at Sydney Airport, damaging engine, delaying flight
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
28 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Iga Swiatek hits back at critics after Wimbledon win
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox LONDON – Iga Swiatek pleaded with the Polish media to 'leave me alone', saying she knows what she is doing after crushing Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 to win her first Wimbledon title on July 12. The 24-year-old was seeded eighth at the All England Club after a disappointing first half of the season, though she is fourth in the rankings after a run to the Bad Homburg final two weeks ago. Swiatek was asked at her post-match press conference whether winning Wimbledon so convincingly was a fitting riposte to those who have criticised her over her performances. 'For sure the past months, how the media sometimes describe me, and I've got to say unfortunately Polish media, how they treated me and my team, it wasn't really pleasant,' she said. 'I hope they will just leave me alone and let me do my job because obviously, you can see that we know what we are doing, and I have the best people around me. 'I have already proved a lot. I know people want more and more, but it's my own process and my own life and my own career. 'Hopefully, I'm going to have a freedom from them, as well, to let me do my job the way I want it.' Swiatek climbed to third in the rankings on July 14 after winning her sixth Grand Slam title on a blazing day on Centre Court. The former world No. 1 destroyed the hapless US 13th seed in just 57 minutes and the American admitted she was 'frozen by nerves'. The only other time a Wimbledon singles final was decided by a 6-0, 6-0 scoreline was in 1911 when Dorothea Lambert Chambers beat fellow British player Dora Boothby. Before July 12, it had happened only once at any of the other Grand Slam finals, in 1988 when Steffi Graf demolished Natasha Zvereva in 34 minutes at the French Open. At least Anisimova almost stretched it to an hour. 'I feel like the last two weeks, if anything, what I've learned it was you're never going to be perfect, and every match is different,' Anisimova said. 'My fighting spirit has gotten me to the final of today. It wasn't me playing perfect in a way. There were matches where I struggled and I wasn't playing to my full potential. 'I think me just staying focused and fighting my way through certain moments and lifting myself up and trying to not get negative on myself was the most important thing. 'I think that's really what got me to the final.' Swiatek, who had not previously gone beyond the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, said she was shocked to have won the grass-court Grand Slam, where she was a junior champion in 2018. She is better known for her prowess on clay, winning four French Open titles as well as the 2022 US Open, played on hard courts. 'Who would have expected that?' she said. 'It's something that is just surreal. I feel like tennis keeps surprising me, and I keep surprising myself. 'I'm really happy with the whole process, how it looked like from the first day we stepped on a grass court. I feel like we did everything for it to go in that direction without expecting it, just working really hard.' Swiatek said it was difficult to rank her Grand Slam triumphs but that winning on grass made it more 'special and unexpected'. 'For sure, it feels like the emotions are bigger because at Roland Garros I know I can play well, and I know I can show it every year,' she said. 'Here, I wasn't sure of that. I also needed to prove that to myself.' Swiatek said it had been special to be presented with the Venus Rosewater Dish by Catherine, Princess of Wales. 'Overall the process of getting the trophy from her Royal Highness was something surreal,' she said. 'Since I'm a kid, honestly I'm a big fan of the royal family. It was amazing. I really appreciate that. I'm really grateful that it was her royal highness giving the trophy.' AFP, REUTERS
Straits Times
42 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Britain's Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool win Wimbledon men's doubles title
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Britain's Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash reacts during the men's doubles final against Australia's Rinky Hijikata and Netherlands' David Pel on July 12. LONDON – Fifth seeds Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool capped their dream summer with the Wimbledon crown and first Grand Slam title as a pair, when the British team downed Rinky Hijikata and David Pel 6-2, 7-6 (7-3) in the men's doubles final on July 12. Queen's Club and Eastbourne champions Cash and Glasspool became the first all-British pairing to win the All England Club trophy since 1936, when Pat Hughes and Raymond Tuckey defeated their compatriots Charles Hare and Frank Wilde in the final. 'When you say it, it sounds incredible,' said Glasspool. 'We've had a Brit win it last year (Henry Patten), the year before that (Neal Skupski), so I didn't think too much of it, but now we needed to give you two, so we did our best.' The local favourites shot out of the blocks after an early break thanks to a poor service game from Pel and raced through the opening set with minimum fuss, leaving fans buzzing on a sun-drenched Centre Court. The Australian-Dutch duo of Hijikata and Pel saved a break point at the start of the second set and applied pressure in the fourth game but their opponents were equal to the task and took a step towards the title when they went 4-2 up. Hijikata and Pel, who entered the tournament as alternates and survived match points in their first two rounds, drew level after eight games before Cash and Glasspool moved up a gear in the tiebreak to prevail and spark huge celebrations. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Government looking at enhancing laws around vaping to tackle issue of drug-laced vapes in Singapore Singapore Why the vape scourge in Singapore concerns everyone Singapore I lost my daughter to Kpod addiction: Father of 19-year-old shares heartbreak and lessons Singapore Organised crime groups pushing drug-laced vapes in Asia including Singapore: UN Singapore From Normal stream to Parliament: 3 Singapore politicians share their journeys Business 29 Jollibean workers get help from MOM, other agencies, over unpaid salaries Asia Why China's high-end hotels are setting up food stalls outside their doors Singapore Geothermal energy present in S'pore, but greater study on costs, stability needed, say experts 'We've played a crazy amount of tennis on the grass, every match we possibly could,' said Cash. 'So a lot of people were talking, coming into this event. There was a lot of pressure on our shoulders. And the fact we've been able to do what everyone was talking about is surreal.' The runners-up cut cheerful figures despite the defeat. "We didn't even meet before the tournament," the 34-year-old Pel said. "I mean, it was our first time speaking on the day the tournament started." Hijikata, who won the 2023 Australian Open title with Jason Kubler, called his All England Club adventure a 'crazy ride'. 'It's been so much fun playing with David,' Hijikata said. 'He's brought such a great energy on the court. He's made it very easy for me out there. It's a dream come true to be playing on Centre Court. A bit shattered, but it was a lot of fun.' Meanwhile, Japanese wheelchair tennis player Yui Kamiji fell short in her bid to complete a career Golden Slam, losing to China's Wang Ziying in the Wimbledon final on July 12. Fourth-seeded Wang defeated top-seeded Kamiji 6-3, 6-3 in 1hr 38min for her second victory in their 10 career meetings. Kamiji, who has won the other three Grand Slam titles and a gold medal at the Paralympics, could hold her serve only twice in the first set. REUTERS, KYODO NEWS
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Hot weather, cool tempers as Germans and Swedes meet at Women's Euro
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Fans Karin Schoch (left) and Oskar Berg posing for a photo ahead of the Women's Euro 2025 match between Germany and Sweden, in Zurich on July 12. Sweden won 4-1 to top Group C. ZURICH – Cold beer flowed from taps on a hot afternoon while German and Swedish fans sang tribal songs ahead of their final Women's Euro 2025 group game in Zurich on July 12, but there was no sign of the kind of alcohol-fuelled violence that has besmirched so many major men's championships. At the fan zone on the city's Europaplatz, Swedish fans outside one bar burst into song, roaring 'Stand up, we are gold and blue!' while their white-clad German counterparts stood and raised their glasses in salute. The two sides met to decide the top two places in Group C at the city's Stadion Letzigrund, and before the game they mingled freely, with only a discreet police presence keeping an eye on the two sets of fans. The Swedes eventually prevailed 4-1 to top the group. 'I think there's a lot more hospitality in women's football,' Swedish fan Oscar Berg said in a packed downtown beer garden where he was sitting with German fan Karin Schoch, who had travelled to Zurich from her home near Stuttgart earlier in the day. 'I think we both enjoy the game, and even though we're only meeting each other today, I think we can both agree on our love for football and we can discuss it in a fun way,' Berg said. 'The atmosphere is not like this (at men's football in Germany), it's different – it's okay, but it's great here, this is better,' Schoch said. Alongside the Swedish and German colours, there were shirts from Switzerland, Finland, Iceland and Brazil in evidence, as well as a host of international clubs. German fans at the tournament have produced special commemorative badges for each game that they are selling for charity. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Government looking at enhancing laws around vaping to tackle issue of drug-laced vapes in Singapore Singapore Why the vape scourge in Singapore concerns everyone Singapore I lost my daughter to Kpod addiction: Father of 19-year-old shares heartbreak and lessons Singapore Organised crime groups pushing drug-laced vapes in Asia including Singapore: UN Singapore From Normal stream to Parliament: 3 Singapore politicians share their journeys Business 29 Jollibean workers get help from MOM, other agencies, over unpaid salaries Asia Why China's high-end hotels are setting up food stalls outside their doors Singapore Geothermal energy present in S'pore, but greater study on costs, stability needed, say experts The fan culture of women's football has long been different from the men's game, and though there are worries that the increasing popularity of the women's game might begin to attract more aggressive elements, German fan Natalie Galvowsky said the only difference she noticed so far was in numbers. 'I've been following the German team since 2019, the amount of supporters is a lot different. When we look back to 2019, I think there were 10,000 people in the stadium in Germany, and today we can fill really, really big stadiums, like 44,000 people,' she told Reuters. 'On the men's side, you can't do it like this,' she said, indicating the fans mingling behind her. 'Here, Sweden and Germany are together, celebrating together, sitting next to each other, and I think when you're going to the men's matches, you don't have this atmosphere.' A few metres away, Sweden's 'Soft Hooligans' fan group was preparing for its march to the stadium, with adults and children having their faces painted and drummers adjusting their equipment for a long night of musical support ahead. 'I think that's the first time at the Euro where the other team had the majority here at the fan zone. In St Gallen and Basel there were more Germans than the others,' Galvowsky said. 'It's really peaceful, and I think it's good to see how we are sitting together... we talked with them, so yeah, really friendly.' Even though spirits were higher than the soaring temperature as kick-off approached, the day passed off without incident. 'No arrests and everyone was in a good mood and looking forward to the match,' the Zurich city police told Reuters. REUTERS
