WIMBLEDON, England: Kate, the Princess of Wales, was back again at Wimbledon on Sunday— this time with her family in tow.
The princess, wearing a green dress to match the green grass of the All England Club, was accompanied by her husband, Prince William, and their two oldest children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.
Prince William, who was wearing a gray blazer, is the heir to the British throne.
The royal family was in the Royal Box for the men’s final between seven-time champion Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz, with Kate set to present the trophy to the winner.
King Felipe VI of Spain was also in the Royal Box to watch as Alcaraz becomes the third Spanish player to play in the men’s final at Wimbledon.
Several former Wimbledon champions were also invited, including Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Stan Smith, Stefan Edberg and Jan Kodes.
The ambassadors from Serbia and Spain were also scheduled to be there.
Princess Kate is the patron of the All England Club and has been in the Royal Box a few times already this year, sitting next to eight-time champion Roger Federer one day and next to King — Billie Jean King, that is — on Saturday for the women’s final.
Princess Kate back in Royal Box at Wimbledon with Prince William and two of their children
https://arab.news/mj3un
Princess Kate back in Royal Box at Wimbledon with Prince William and two of their children
- The princess, wearing a green dress to match the green grass of the All England Club, was accompanied by her husband, Prince William, and their two oldest children
- Princess Kate is the patron of the All England Club and has been in the Royal Box a few times already this year
Fans bid farewell to Japan’s only pandas
TOKYO: Panda lovers in Tokyo said goodbye on Sunday to a hugely popular pair of the bears that are set to return to China, leaving Japan without the beloved animals for the first time in half a century.
Loaned out as part of China’s “panda diplomacy” program, the distinctive black-and-white animals have symbolized friendship between Beijing and Tokyo since the normalization of diplomatic ties in 1972.
Some visitors at Ueno Zoological Gardens were left teary-eyed as they watched Japan’s only two pandas Lei Lei and Xiao Xiao munch on bamboo.
The animals are expected to leave for China on Tuesday following a souring of relations between Asia’s two largest economies.
“I feel like seeing pandas can help create a connection with China too, so in that sense I really would like pandas to come back to Japan again,” said Gen Takahashi, 39, a Tokyo resident who visited the zoo with his wife and their two-year-old daughter.
“Kids love pandas as well, so if we could see them with our own eyes in Japan, I’d definitely want to go.”
The pandas’ abrupt return was announced last month after Japan’s conservative premier Sanae Takaichi hinted Tokyo could intervene militarily in the event of any attack on Taiwan.
Her comment provoked the ire of Beijing, which regards the island as its own territory.
The 4,400 lucky winners of an online lottery took turns viewing the four-year-old twins at Ueno zoo while others gathered nearby, many sporting panda-themed shirts, bags and dolls to celebrate the moment.
Mayuko Sumida traveled several hours from the central Aichi region in the hope of seeing them despite not winning the lottery.
“Even though it’s so big, its movements are really funny-sometimes it even acts kind of like a person,” she said, adding that she was “totally hooked.”
“Japan’s going to be left with zero pandas. It feels kind of sad,” she said.
Their departure might not be politically motivated, but if pandas return to Japan in the future it would symbolize warming relations, said Masaki Ienaga, a professor at Tokyo Woman’s Christian University and expert in East Asian international relations.
“In the future...if there are intentions of improving bilateral ties on both sides, it’s possible that (the return of) pandas will be on the table,” he told AFP.
