Prince William ditched the suit to show off his beach volleyball skills during a beach volleyball day in Cornwall.
The crowds at Fistral beach watched on Thursday, May 9, as the 41-year-old prince set up his serve and perfected his stance only for him to clumsily slap the ball into the net.
Despite his beach blunder, the crowd cheered him on with a rapturous applause.
While volleyball might not be his area of expertise, William is known to be very good at other sports, including water polo.
As a student at the University of St Andrew’s, he represented Scotland in the Celtic Nations tournament. He previously served as the captain of the swim team and the house soccer team at Eton.
He is also said to be good at basketball and clay pigeon shooting, and he represented the school at cross-country running.William is known to be very good at other sports, including water polo.
William’s volleyball match came amid his first overnight stay since his wife Princess Kate Middleton, 42, was diagnosed with cancer.
Before he hit the southwest of England beach, he visited the site of a new housing project in Newquay. The project was announced earlier this year and will feature 24 living spaces for people experiencing homelessness.
For the outing, he donned a navy suit with a pale blue button-down shirt. He flashed a smile as he met with coordinators of the project.
William and Kate, 42, inherited the titles of Duke and Duchess of Cornwall in 2022 following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Thursday marked the first time William has visited Cornwall since he was given the title.
Kate revealed in March that she was diagnosed with a form of cancer following her abdominal surgery two months prior.
Before Kate’s health battle was made public, an insider told Us Weekly that William “canceled two out of the country appearances” in order to tackle “more of the childcare duties” at home following Kate’s procedure.
(The couple, who recently celebrated 13 years of marriage, share Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6.)
William will also be traveling to the Isles of Scilly today, Friday, May 10, to meet with hospital staff and operators of St Mary’s Harbour.
Kate, meanwhile, is taking her time getting back into the swing of royal duties. She was last spotted attending an official engagement in December 2023 and has stayed largely out of the public eye amid her recovery.
Buckingham Palace previously announced that Kate’s return to public duties will be at the discretion of her doctors.
“The Princess will return to official duties when she is cleared to do so by her medical team. She is in good spirits and is focused on making a full recovery,” read a March statement.
It added that William “will continue to balance supporting his wife and family and maintaining his official duties as he has done since the start of the year.”
