Australian Open

The Australian Open is the first Grand Slam tennis tournament of the year, held each January in Melbourne. It has been in operation since 1905 as the premier Asian tennis tournament. The event is currently held on hard courts, but was on grass courts every year until 1988.

The event has championships for men's and women's singles, as well as men's, women's and mixed doubles. It also hosts juniors, exhibition and legend competitions.

In the 2012 event, Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka claimed the singles titles. The 2013 event takes place from Jan. 14-27.

The first major tennis tournament in Australia was held in 1880, but the Australian Open as we know it came to be in the early 1900s. In 1904, seven state associations in Australia and New Zealand combined to form the Lawn Tennis Association of Australasia. That body hosted its first championship the next year, the Australasian men's tournament held in Melbourne.

And so, in 1905, with only 17 competitors, the Pacific Grand Slam was formed. New Zealand hosted the tournament the following year, and again in 1912, but decided to split from the Australasian association in 1922. Since then, it has been known as Australia's tournament.

The women's championship was held for the first time in 1922, and with that addition, the tournament was named a major by the International Lawn Tennis Federation in 1924. The tournament changed its name three years later, becoming known as the Australian Championships. It was only in 1969 that the tournament was called the Australian Open -- the first year both professionals and amateurs could participate.

Shortly after the Open was born, it gained its permanent home. The tournament, which had been held around Australia for the previous 70 years, was held in Melbourne every year after 1971. It gained a permanent home in the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club in 1982, ushering in several other key moments in Open history in the 1980s.

In 1986, the association became known as Tennis Australia. That year, no Open was held, as it had just sealed its place as the first Grand Slam of the annual year and would be held each January from then on. Starting in 1988, the Open was no longer held on a grass court -- with a move to Flinders (now Melbourne) Park, the tournament moved to hard courts. The change of venue brought a huge increase in attendance that year -- almost 90 percent -- and that would continue to grow.

Melbourne Park is a sports venue that can be used for tennis, basketball, ice skating and numerous other sports and entertainment events. It is primarily known for hosting the Australian Open each January.

The Park was built in 1988 as a home for the Open, which had previously been held in Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club. Kooyong had become too small for the ever-growing event, so the Australian government decided to build a new venue. Originally known as the National Tennis Center, the park was renamed in 1996 when the government chose to promote Melbourne in its name.

The park's center court is Rod Laver Arena, named after the Australian tennis great. It seats almost 15,000 spectators and, significantly, was one of the first tennis courts to feature a retractable roof. The second court, Hisense Arena, was opened in 2000 to provide a second top-class court at the facility. It also has a retractable roof and holds about 10,500.

Melbourne Park was renovated in a $25 million process in the mid-90s, also when construction began for its second top court. The Australian government approved more renovations -- expected to cost more than 363 million Australian dollars -- in 2009.