A crowd's reaction to the Princess of Wales has gone viral after spectator-shot footage from the 2023 Wimbledon tennis championships resurfaced on social media.
Kate is a keen follower of tennis and has become the sport's most high-profile fan in Britain, attending the Wimbledon Championships in London, both in her years as a member of the royal family and as a child.
In 2016, Queen Elizabeth gave Kate the patronage of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), the organization that hosts the Wimbledon events each year. As patron, the princess presents the prizes to the women's and men's singles champions.
Uploaded to TikTok by user @the_blazing_royals on October 20, footage showing Kate's arrival on Wimbledon's historic Centre Court to watch British champion Andy Murray play against fellow Brit Ryan Peniston.
As the princess entered the royal box to take her seat, cameras caught the moment spectators rose to their feet and began to applaud. Captioned "The respect Princess Catherine commands," the clip has been viewed over 287,000 times on TikTok so far, gaining more than 11,800 likes and 265 comments, many of which have praised the royal.
"She commands a room with just a smile!! LOVE HER!!!!" posted one user, with a further comment reading: "I am amazed of how slowly and steadily she earned this! And it is all her!"
Kate was joined in the royal box on the day of the Murray/Peniston game by eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer, who retired in 2022.
Federer and the princess have met on several occasions over the years. In 2023, Kate participated in a short film with the sports star, meeting some of the young people who take part in the Wimbledon Championships each year as ball boys and girls.
As part of the film, Kate took to one of Wimbledon's famous courts with Federer, putting her tennis skills to the test with a seasoned champion.
In addition to the world-class tennis, Kate has proven to be a figure of interest at the annual Wimbledon events for her fashion choices.
In 2023, the princess attended on three days of the championships, coordinating her wardrobe in varying shades of green.
On the day she sat with Federer, Kate opted for a pale mint-green blazer with white piping and accents, by Paris fashion brand Balmain.
For the women's singles final, the royal wore a darker shade of mint in the form of a tweed dress from the label Self-Portrait. And for the men's singles final, at which she was joined by husband, Prince William, and her two eldest children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, the royal wore a Roland Mouret dress in a dark shade of forest green.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
