Wimbledon stars are pilfering the iconic tournament’s towels at an astonishing rate, with nearly 500 of the £40 cotton towels being taken each day. Championship bosses have stockpiled 7,000 towels to keep up with demand, but players are still managing to walk off with them in droves.
Strawberry Towel Craze
This year’s limited edition red version, nicknamed the “strawberry towel,” has been particularly popular. In the first six days of the tournament, 3,789 towels were handed out to players but only 1,044 were returned, meaning 457 towels are stolen per day, according to the Times.
Iga Swiatek: The 'Towel Thief'
Ladies' champion Iga Swiatek, who was knocked out by Alexandra Eala in the third round this year, was nicknamed the ‘towel thief’ after videos of her piling them into her bag went viral. She says she hands them out to family, friends and charity as well as adding them to her collection. “I guess I should steal more,” she said after fans highlighted her shameless pilfering.
Federer and Djokovic Confess
Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic previously admitted to stealing the towels. Federer said: “I have a big collection stacked up back home. They make good gifts.” Djokovic said he brings an extra suitcase with him to fill with towels to “make a lot of people back home” happy. He also said he pretends to sweat to get extra towels.
Former Pro's Confession
Former British pro tennis player Kyle Edmund also admitted he used to steal “lots of things”. He said: “My sister asked me for a towel today - so I won’t get to keep it. Even as a player, the souvenirs are cool. People keep the water bottles. I see them at other competitions. Players really like that stuff.”
