The Princess of Wales will not be accompanying Prince William to Windsor today for his annual charity polo tournament, according to Kensington Palace.
As she continues to recuperate from cancer, the Princess of Wales will not be able to attend a significant yearly event with Prince William today.
Afterwards, Prince William will hit the polo field at the Guards Polo Club in Windsor Great Park for the Out-Sourcing Inc Royal Charity Polo Cup 2024, an event that aims to generate funds for charitable organizations. At last month’s Trooping the Colour, Kate—who is currently undergoing chemotherapy for cancer—briefly returned to the public eye. It has been confirmed by Kensington Palace, nevertheless, that she will not be a spectator for her husband’s cup match. The palace has announced that the event would be held to generate funds for charities that William and Kate are deeply committed to supporting.
In attendance last year was the princess, who kissed her husband and presented him with a prize. Though she was “not out of the woods yet” and had “good days and bad days” while undergoing treatment, Kate disclosed in a statement last month that she was making good progress. This weekend, as patron of The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, Kate is rumoured to attend the Wimbledon Championships tennis finals.
On the other hand, William is due to board a flight to Berlin, Germany, on Sunday to witness England play Spain in the Euro 2024 football final. This polo match will be William’s thirteenth appearance, and it is expected to raise £1 million this year, bringing the total raised to almost £13 million.
The Motor Neuron Disease Association is one of eleven nonprofits that will reap the benefits. Following Rob Burrow’s passing from motor neuron disease (MND) last month, William paid tribute to the “legend of rugby league” and MND activist on a personal level. The Royal Marsden, Action for Children, The Blackthorn Rally, HMS Oardacious Fund, SHOUT, Child Bereavement UK, Royal African Society, Place2Be, and Wales Air Ambulance are among the other causes that will receive donations.
The polo match today is William’s second public appearance in as many days; yesterday, he spoke about his mission to prevent homelessness and apologized for his raspy voice in a speech he gave the morning after the England men’s football team advanced to the Euro 2024 final.
Guests were informed by the Prince of Wales that he had “a hoarse voice after last night” as he enthusiastically praised a “hell of a goal” scored by Ollie Watkins, who propelled England to a triumph. To celebrate the one-year anniversary of his Homewards project, he spent almost an hour yesterday at an event in Brixton, where he asked industry leaders for advice on how to best assist.
He entered the event through a modest courtyard garden and proceeded to visit six stands representing the six project locations: Newport, the towns of Bournemouth, Poole, and Christchurch in Dorset; Lambeth; Belfast; Aberdeen; and Sheffield. At each stand, he found three or four local experts who were delighted to speak with him.
Knowing that the prince is both the President of the FA and a passionate supporter of Aston Villa—the club where goal scorer Watkins plays—the BPC team brought up the subject of football. “I’ve got a hoarse voice from last night!” William spoke up. There was a brief period when I wondered if ‘…he might do this’!? As soon as he hopped aboard, I was ready to have him around. What an incredible goal!
As the event progressed, he received congratulations on his performance and responded with a mix of happiness and laughter: “I didn’t play last night, I can’t take credit for it.”
