Eugène Adrien Roland Georges Garros was a French aviation pioneer and fighter pilot. Garros began a career in aviation in 1909 and performed many early feats before joining the French army and becoming one of the earliest fighter pilots during World War I. Garros was shot down on 5 October 1918. In 1928, the Roland Garros tennis stadium was named in his memory; the French Open tennis tournament takes the name of Roland Garros, which is held in this stadium.
Roland Garros in front of a Demoiselle plane in 1910
Garros in an aircraft cockpit
Garros' propeller, with its bullet deflectors, after being recovered from his downed aircraft
Stade Roland Garros is a complex of tennis courts, including stadiums, located in Paris that hosts the French Open. That tournament, also known as Roland Garros, is a Grand Slam tennis championship played annually in late May and early June. The complex is named after Roland Garros (1888–1918), a pioneering French aviator, and was constructed in 1928 to host France's first defence of the Davis Cup.
Court Philippe Chatrier in 2022, the complex's centerpiece and principal venue
Monument in Place des Mousquetaires to France's string of Davis Cup victories (1927–1933). Stade Roland Garros was constructed to provide a venue for France's first successful Cup defense in 1928.
Court Philippe Chatrier in 2023
Court Suzanne Lenglen prior to 2023 refurbishment