Wimbledon organizers are “hopeful” that Kate Middleton will continue her yearly tradition at the famed tennis tournament.
The 42-year-old royal has presented Wimbledon championship winners with their trophies as part of her duties as the patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club since 2016. In an new interview, All England Club chair Debbie Jevans recently told Telegraph Sport that tournament organizers will grant the Princess of Wales “as much flexibility as possible” to take part in this year’s event amid ongoing cancer treatments.
“We’re hopeful that the Princess of Wales will be able to present the trophies as the Club’s patron, but her health and recovery is the priority,” Jevans said. “We don’t know what we don’t know. All we’ve said is that we’ll work with her and give her as much flexibility as possible.”
Kate Middleton recently made her first public appearance since announcing her cancer diagnosis in late March, joining her family at Trooping the Colour earlier this month. She prefaced her return to the public eye with a personal health update on Instagram, telling supporters that she is “making good progress” but will be continuing treatment for “a few more months.”
All this to say, it may be worth keeping an eye out for Kate Middleton women’s and men’s singles finals on July 13 and 14, though her attendance is not a given. “As anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days,” Middleton told well-wishers in June. “On those bad days you feel weak, tired and you have to give in to your body resting. But on the good days, when you feel stronger, you want to make the most of feeling well.”
She continued, “I am learning how to be patient, especially with uncertainty. Taking each day as it comes, listening to my body, and allowing myself to take this much needed time to heal.”
