The Princess of Wales is a well-known tennis fan and attends the All England Club almost every year during Wimbledon. However, one year she was advised not to attend the tournament despite her pleas to be allowed to go, and missed a historic win.
Thirteen years ago in 2013, Sir Andy Murray made it to the men's singles final, aiming to become the first British man to win the Grand Slam since Fred Perry in 1936. Kate was eager to be at Wimbledon to cheer him on but was heavily pregnant with Prince George at the time, so she was advised to watch the match from home.
Kate's Regret Over Missing Historic Match
She told Sue Barker on the BBC documentary Our Wimbledon: "I was very heavily pregnant with George so I wasn't able to turn up." Sue replied: "But you had a great excuse!" Kate said: "I know but even still. I was sort of 'Maybe I could go' but the doctors were like 'no.' I wrote to [Andy Murray] afterwards saying sorry for not being there, but huge congratulations."
Three years later in 2016, when Murray made the final again, Kate was able to be there to see him lift his second Wimbledon title. She attended the final with husband Prince William and couldn't contain her emotions when he served up a win. Meeting Murray after his match, Kate said: "Many congratulations; it was a great game." While William said: "So pleased for you, well done", and Kate added: "You can relax with your family now."
Recent Wimbledon Visit
On her recent visit to Wimbledon last week, Kate caught up with Sir Andy once again as well as former British ladies number one Anne Keothavong. The former tennis players sat with Kate in court one to watch Brit Katie Swan face America's Madison Keys, and Anne said she, Sir Andy and the princess spent time discussing their children. Swan ultimately lost the match.
Keothavong said: "She didn't stop chatting, it was brilliant. Andy was there as well and we all have kids (who are of a) similar age, so a lot of the chat revolved around that, and tennis, and encouraging young kids to play and the challenges that we face as parents." She added: "It was really fun. She was really interested in the tennis and really easy to talk to." Asked how much detail the princess, a tennis player herself, went into when discussing the tennis, Keothavong said: "I think she had a huge amount of appreciation for the power that the players were able to produce, and the athleticism of both Katie and Madison."
