This “Unexpected” Moment Left Kate Middleton “Really Surprised” at Wimbledon Earlier This Month

Last year, as she continued cancer treatment, Kate Middleton was given a standing ovation at Wimbledon as she attended alongside her daughter Princess Charlotte and her sister Pippa Middleton. It was only the Princess of Wales’s second public appearance for all of 2024 following her diagnosis earlier in the year, and her July 14 appearance at the tennis tournament that is so beloved to her was an emotional one.

But then again, this year—following Kate’s announcement in January that she is in remission—the future queen was again given a standing ovation at Wimbledon on July 12, 10 days after she revealed on July 2 that life after cancer treatment was a “rollercoaster.”

The July 12 ovation at Wimbledon “was unexpected,” a source told Us Weekly, adding that Kate was “really surprised and felt humbled by it.”

Kate attended the ladies’ singles final that Saturday solo and, upon entering the venue, received a standing ovation from the crowd. The Princess of Wales appeared to get visibly emotional as those in the crowd cheered her on, so soon after such vulnerable comments like, “You’re not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to” and that the phase after cancer treatment “is really, really difficult.”

“She felt really good, and it reinforced her recovery and that everyone is rooting for her,” the insider added of Kate’s appearance earlier this month. “She doesn’t follow the press, so to get a real-world reaction was incredibly fulfilling for her.”

As the Princess of Wales continues to gradually return to public life, she said on a July 2 visit to Colchester Hospital that it “takes time” to find a “new normal,” and that post-cancer treatment is “not smooth, like you expect it to be.”

“The reality is, you go through hard times,” she added.

On July 13, Kate brought along her husband Prince William and kids Prince George and Princess Charlotte to the men’s singles final, which stemmed “from her desire to blend her royal duties with family time and create some normalcy for the kids amid her health journey,” the source said. “It was a deliberate choice to include them in a positive high-profile event so they can all enjoy it.”

“It’s signaling she is back,” the source added.

As Kate took to Centre Court to present prizes following the men’s singles final, a fan shouted, “I love you, Kate!” The Princess of Wales heard the comment—made by Father Jim Sichko from Lexington, Kentucky—and appeared to laugh in response to it. Sichko, a cancer survivor himself, told People that after seeing “how she was so excited and thrilled and smiled and laughed” that it was “very moving for me,” he said.

“There was laughter,” he continued. “It was a moment of true spontaneity. There was joy in the air.”

“There was a sense of such respect and an honor at this woman, at this individual, who happens to be a princess and who happens to really exhibit what I believe the world needs in a time of great despair,” he added. “Our world is in a real difficult place right now, and I believe that she exhibits hope and love and radiance, and that’s what we need in the world.”

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