Princess Kate isn’t just a bystander when it comes to her passion for sports and games.
During a conversation on Mike Tindall’s “The Good, The Bad & The Rugby” podcast, Princess Anne’s son-in-law trolled Kate, 41, for her competitive nature.
“I’m not going to say you’re uber competitive,” royal family member Mike Tindall said, while subtly nodding to cohosts James Haskell and Alex Payne on the Saturday, September 9, episode.
“I’m not competitive at all,” Kate nonchalantly replied.
Tindall, 44, doubled down. “I’ve seen her play beer pong!” he confessed as the group laughed.
Kate, Prince William and Anne, 73, appeared on the Saturday episode of Tindall’s podcast to discuss their love of athletics amid the Rugby World Cup in France. The royal trio are the patrons of three rugby organizations in the U.K. while Tindall is a former rugby player. (Mike is married to Anne’s daughter, Zara Tindall.)
Kate explained that her enthusiasm for competition comes from growing up playing sports and being active with her family.
“[My parents] always encouraged us to be physically active and sporty. They always encouraged us into doing team sports and trying [new] things,” Kate shared, noting that her family loves to take walks and go swimming. “I think that’s the important thing for young people today is actually being exposed to a variety [of activities.]”
Despite Kate swearing she’s “really not that competitive,” the Princess of Wales admitted that she and William, 41, face off in epic hour-long battles of table tennis that never seem to come to an official end.
“I don’t think we’ve managed to finish a game of tennis, the two of us,” Kate revealed. “It becomes a mental challenge between the two of us.”
William noted that the match between him and his wife usually comes down to “who can out-mental each other.”
While Kate and William share a love for competition, when it comes to their children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, the couple try to teach them how to be gracious whether they win or lose.
“It’s that camaraderie, that relationship-building [and] learning to lose, which I think we’ve got to concentrate more on nowadays. I think people don’t know how to lose well,” William shared. “Talking about our children in particular, I want to make sure they understand that. It’s really important from a young age to understand how to lose and why we lose and then to grow from it through that process.”
Kate explained that her three little ones all have “very different temperaments” in general. As Kate watches her children try out different activities, she can’t wait to see how their competitive nature “grows and develops” over time.
