The Princess tried her hand at being one of the tournament’s prestigious ball boys and girls in a special clip.
The Princess of Wales made a mistake and inadvertently broke Wimbledon rules when she tried her hand at being a ball girl for the tournament. As Patron of The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, the princess took part in a film highlighting the training that goes into being the tournaments Ball Boys and Girls (BBG). Despite having a keen interest in the sport, Princess Kate made a under during her training which would have broken the rules.
In the film, the Princess is seen in a rally with tennis legend and eight-time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer. Dressed in the regulation all-white outfit Kate showed off her competitive side before the pair turned their hand to the ball boys and girls. One moment shows the Princess taking a rather impressive catch, but that wasn’t what she was supposed to do. Federer is quick to question the catch asking: “Are you allowed to do that? In Australia, they would catch it, but in Wimbledon, they don’t.”
Kate asked the ball girl who stood next to her: “Ah yeah, are you allowed to do that?”. The ballgirl explained: “You are not meant to catch it. “You are meant to let it bounce and then get it, but good catch.” The pair also visited the training centre at All England Clubs Community Tennis Centre in Raynes Park where they took part in more training. During the film, the Princess of Wales said: “Wimbledon is renowned for its amazingly professional Ball Boys and Ball Girls, the amount of work it takes, it’s incredible to see it behind the scenes.
“With all the discipline and everything you’ve learnt, you’ll be able to take it into so many other parts of your life, things like confidence and that feeling of pride with being on any of the courts is such a big moment.” Each year more than 1,000 applicants between ages 13 and 15 take part in the training sessions before 250 take to the courts for the two-week tournament.
Speaking to the teenagers in training the Princess continued: “The training and the dedication and the amount of time that’s put into training and making sure this goes well on the day for the champions who are laying at Wimbledon it’s incredible to see it, so thank you, I’ve really enjoyed it.” Wimbledon begins on July 3 and lasts until July 16.
