Lena Rice : Short Biography

Helena, better known as Lena, Rice was born in Marhill, County Tipperary on the 21st of June 1866. Her father was Spring Rice, and her mother was Anne Gorde. Lena lost her father at a young age. Her mother was then left with a large family of eight children to raise alone. Lena was the second youngest in the family. 

Prior to Spring's death, the Rice family lived in comfort. They had  two storey Georgian home with a large garden. It was in this garden that Lena, along with her older sister Annie, learned to play tennis at a young age. When she was old enough, she joined the Cahir Lawn Tennis Club. There she honed the skills that would elevate her to fame. She had a steady stream of new opponents supplied by a nearby army unit. 

She competed regularly in her native Tipperary, eventually branching out to the Irish Championships in Dublin in 1889. Although she did not fare too well in the singles competition, the 23 year old Lena won the mixed doubles title. 

A mere six weeks later, Lena and Annie travelled to England to take part in the now world famous Wimbledon competition. At the time there were only six entrants in the contest. Lena was a highly skilled player, and she reached the final with ease, making her the first Irish woman to do so. In her final match she met Blanche Bingley Hillyard, the same player who had defeated her in Dublin a few weeks earlier. Hillyard was a sesoned Wimbledon competitor, having won the competition in 1886. Although Lena played well and won the first set, the title was not to be hers that year, as Hillyard defeated her once again. 

Not one to be deterred by a set back, Lena returned to Wimbledon the following year to try again for the title. This time there were only four entrants, and Hillyard was not amongst them, having taken a year off due to pregnancy. In the 1890 contest Lena faced off against Mary Jacks whom she defeated, winning the title, the prize money, and her place in history as the first Irish woman to take home the Wimbeldon trophy. In that same year, Willoughby Hamilton also became the first Irish man to win the singles competition at Wimbeldon. Lena's winning point was secured using a move called the 'overhead smash', which she is credited with inventing. 

1890 was Lena's last Wimbledon competition as she did not return the following year to defend her title, nor any year after that. In fact, there is no record of her ever playing in public again. It is generally believed that she retired from professional tennis to care for her mother who was suffering through an illness. 

In 1907, on her 41st birthday, Lena died at home in Tipperary of tuberculosis. She is buried in the New Inn cemetery.