When the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics kicked off in late July, royal watchers were hoping for a surprise public outing by Kate Middleton and Prince William because the City of Lights is only a short trip away from their home in England. Though Princess Anne and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, were both in Paris to see some of Team Great Britain’s more spectacular moments, the Prince and Princess of Wales kept their congratulations to a video also featuring Snoop Dogg, David Beckham, and other British notables.
On a Thursday trip to the Birtley Community Pool in Tyne and Wear, England, William explained that Kate’s chemotherapy treatments and a summer uptick in COVID-19 cases prompted his decision to stay home during the major international event. He made the comments while speaking to Paralympians Maisie Summer-Newton and Louise Fiddes and Olympians Tom Dean and Adam Peaty, who tested positive for COVID-19 during his own trip to Paris.
“I was so keen to come,” William said, before looking over at Peaty. “But I have to say after reading someone’s interview about COVID, I decided—because my wife was obviously having chemo—that I didn’t want to risk bringing COVID home. So Adam very kindly reminded me that that was still a thing!” He added that they did follow the events on television. “We decided to play it safe, but we watched the whole thing. We were glued to it every day.”
During the conversation, William got the opportunity to touch some of the medals that the swimmers brought home. The prince added that his wife and his older son Prince George share his enthusiasm for the water. “Catherine and I both adore swimming,” he said, according to Hello!. “George loves scuba diving. He was ten years old, we took him under, thinking he’d freak out, but he absolutely loved it. It’s just introduced him to the world of water.”
William visited the pool, which was recently renovated, to celebrate his and Kate’s Royal Foundation entering into a new partnership to support swimming activities for 16,000 people, including 6,500 children and young people, every month. According to a statement, the foundation has been working with the Birtley Community Pool behind the scenes for the last six months to help support an effort to refurbish and reopen the pool following its July 2023 shutdown due to a lack of funding.
