Why the French Open is named after Roland Garros, who didn't play tennis

French aviator Roland Garros pictured in the cockpit of an aircraft in 1911. Branger//Hulton Archive hide caption toggle caption Branger//Hulton Archive The second tennis Grand Slam tournament of the year is underway in Paris: the French Open, as many English-speakers call it. But the official name of the tournament — and the complex where it takes place — is Roland Garros. Many tennis tournaments are named after famous players, like the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup. Roland Garros, however, was an aviation pioneer and World War I fighter pilot with no known connection to the racquet sport. "He's an important figure in early aviation, both as a record-setter before the war and as a wartime pilot," says Christopher Moore, the curator for World War I aircraft at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. "He's considered the first person to shoot down another aircraft with a gun firing forward between the propeller." So how did Garros become synonymous with tennis? The short answer: In 1928, a decade after Garros was killed in action, Paris' new tennis stadium needed a name. Emile Lesueur, president of the Stade Français rugby club, suggested Garros — his former business school classmate. "I guess he was a national hero, and that kind of tells you how people thought about him," Moore says. Here's the (slightly) longer version. Roland Garros is both the name of the tennis tournament and the Paris facility where it is held. …