Yellow rubber duck revealed by Wimbledon as secret weapon to predict tournament weather

Wimbledon has spent millions of pounds on one of the most accurate weather kits in the world.

But despite the advanced technology, which can even predict downpours on individual jobsites, the most prized tool is a bucket and a rubber duck named John QuackEnroe.

The paddling pool is located on the roof at SW19 and has an infrared camera so the team can watch QuackEnroe day and night to determine the type of rain.

It’s the ‘low-tech’ companion to the club’s advanced radar that fires at rain clouds every 20 seconds to see the exact time and location of each downpour.

Paul Abeille, the station’s manager, said of the bucket: ‘My radar is quite expensive, but this is a few pounds’, adding: ‘That’s very important to us because you can see when there are drops in the water fall or it’s big drops or small drops and you can imagine what falls on the track.’

Paul Abeille, manager of the station, said of the bucket: ‘My radar is quite expensive, but this is a few pounds’

The radar system is so advanced that it often instructs umpires to keep playing when it starts to rain because it knows it will stop in a few minutes.

Forecasters share the information with HQ who beams it on to a panel on the outside of Center Court that is visible to spotters on all outer lanes.

This broadcasts a number from one to eight, which have different instructions from ‘teams covering the court must be ready’, ‘stop play at the discretion of the referee’ and ‘cover the courts immediately’, ‘deflate the blankets’ and ‘dressing the jobs’. ‘.

But despite the station’s accuracy and the expertise of the meterologists, it doesn’t stop officials from suggesting they know better.

Abby Smith, senior operational meteorologist, said, “Sometimes the umpire comes in and says, ‘I’m not sure about that cloud.'”

BBC tennis pundit and former world men’s number one player John McEnroe, pictured with former women’s number three Sue Barker

Ground crew sheltering from the rain as rain interrupts play on the outside courts during day nine of The Championships Wimbledon 2023

Embarrassed by the Met Office, they are only responsible for forecasting forecasts up to a mile away from the Club – after which Mr Abeille’s team at Meteo France takes over for a ‘hyper-accurate’ view.

The Frenchman uses his technology at events around the world, but says Wimbledon is ‘the most fun’ due to the unpredictable weather.

“It’s more fun here than in Bahrain,” he joked. “I love forecasting here because it’s constantly changing.”