Kate Middleton suffers gaffe at Wimbledon as Roger Federer breaks royal protocol
One of the world's greatest tennis players put the Princess of Wales in an awkward situation at Wimbledon after breaking Royal protocol.
Newly-retired Roger Federer made a surprise appearance at the annual tennis tournament yesterday (July 4) and was invited to sit in the Royal box to watch Elena Rybakina take on Shelby Rogers on centre court.
But when entering the box, he broke a huge piece of Royal protocol by touching Kate Middleton on the back while saying hello.
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He also leaned towards her as if he was going to embrace her – which is not unusual given he's friends with Kate's sister Pippa and was Prince George's former tennis teacher.
Kate awkwardly stepped back and without saying a word made it clear that this was not appropriate, but the pair did seem pally throughout the match regardless of the odd moment.
The official rules of Royal protocol state that he should have just done a “neck bow” or shaken her hand.
According to the slightly outdated website, the rules state: “There are no obligatory codes of behaviour when meeting The Queen or a member of the Royal Family, but many people wish to observe the traditional forms.
“For men this is a neck bow (from the head only) whilst women do a small curtsy. Other people prefer simply to shake hands in the usual way.
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“For other female members of the Royal Family the first address is conventionally 'Your Royal Highness' and subsequently 'Ma'am'.”
Despite the awkwardness, the pair, alongside Roger Federer's wife Mirka, watched a decent tennis match, as Rybakina won 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 to advance to the second round.
The Russian-born athlete who is representing Kazakhstan, is hotly tipped to win the competition, although is currently the number three ranked player at the tournament.
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