Wimbledon's Period issue - Calls to change event's dress code

The annual Wimbledon Championships returns tomorrow. The tournament stands tall because of the level of tennis matches it provides and the tradition it has.

There is one particular tradition that has grown to be problematic over the years, which is the strict dress code. Every player that participates in Wimbledon must only wear white, other colours aren’t allowed to occupy a surface wider than 1cm on a player’s attire.

Puerto Rican tennis player Monica Puig brought this to attention on Twitter less than a month ago. David Law shared a tweet from The Tennis Podcast where player Qinwen Zheng discussed her period was a debilitating impact while playing tennis. Puig responded to Law’s tweet by highlighting the impact periods have on a player’s performance, especially at Wimbledon.

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The 28-year-old tweeted: “Definitely something that affects female athletes! Finally bringing it to everyone’s attention! Not to mention the mental stress of having to wear all white at Wimbledon and praying not to have your period during those two weeks.”

Players at Wimbledon must wear white because of its resistance to sweat patches. The dress code was written in the genteel 1880s, when the sight of sweat was considered rude and improper.

In the past players have tried to rebel against the dress code. Roger Federer was reprimanded in 2013 for wearing orange-soled white shoes that he was forced to replace in his next match. Martina Navratilova was also told off for wearing a blue-striped skirt the following year.

Australian player and now tennis coach Rennae Stubbs has spoken out about how the menstruation conversation is frequent in Wimbledon locker