The Princess of Wales will attend the men's singles final between Spain's Carlos Alcaraz and Serbian tennis legend Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon on Sunday, according to Kensington Palace.
The Context
In March the princess revealed she was receiving treatment for cancer and would undergo chemotherapy, since when she's only made a limited number of public appearances.
In June, Kate attended Trooping the Colour, an annual military parade held to celebrate the monarch's official birthday. Following the parade she joined the monarch to watch a Royal Air Force flypast, along with her husband and three children.
In a statement concerning her cancer released on June 14 the princess said: "I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days...My treatment is ongoing and will be for a few more months."
King Charles III is also being treated for cancer, which was diagnosed in February.
What We Know
Kensington Palace confirmed Kate will attend Sunday's final where she is expected to present the winning trophy, as has been customary in recent years. Kate has been patron of the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club (AELTC), which organizes the Wimbledon competition, since 2016.
In a brief statement the Palace said: "The Princess of Wales, Patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club will attend the Gentlemen's Singles Final of The Championships, Wimbledon on Sunday 14 July."
The princess is not expected to attend the women's final between Jasmine Paolini and Barbora Krejcikova on Saturday and at her request the winner's trophy will be presented by AELTC chair Deborah Jevans.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph in June, Jevans said organizers were "staying flexible" over who would present the winning trophies because of Kate's ongoing cancer treatment.
Referring to the princess she 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."
Jevans added: "I don't know who would present the trophies as an alternative—that's something to consider nearer the time if necessary.
"We're staying flexible. When we hear we'll then think about what's the right thing to do."
Views
In an interview with The Sun, royal expert Charles Rae, who spent decades covering the Royal Family, claimed the AELTC would be very keen for the princess to attend.
He said: "I think the people at Wimbledon would love to have Catherine back in again because it will boost the viewing audience and boost people being there.
"The problem with it is that when we first found out about her cancer, various people were putting dates on about when she was due to come back.
"She was going to be back in late April, she's going to be back for Trooping or back for whatever. We just don't know when she is going to be back."
About the writer
James Bickerton is a Newsweek U.S. News reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is covering U.S. politics and world ... Read more
