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Princess Kate sports hand injury again as she joins Prince William on Marlow mental health visit - best photos

The royal couple visited Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre  


Prince William and Kate Middleton smiling in marlow
Phoebe Tatham
Content Writer
Updated: On 12 October 2023
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The Prince and Princess of Wales visited Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre in Marlow on Thursday.

Their visit is part of a series of engagements held this week to mark World Mental Health Day which takes place annually on 10th October. During their royal engagement, the couple shone a light on the interaction between mental health and sport.

Take a look at their arrival in the video below... 

WATCH: Princess Kate sports hand injury as she arrives for Marlow mental health visit with Prince William

They attended a mental fitness workshop run by SportsAid in conjunction with SportsAid's charity partner BelievePerform. The workshop aims to support young sports people and their families to manage their mental wellbeing and understand how they can help themselves and each other to build the skills for happy and healthy experiences in sport and beyond.

william and kate visiting marlow © Getty
The royal couple travelled to Marlow in Buckinghamshire

During a candid chat with a group of young athletes, Prince William, 41, said: "For me, resilience is a mindset. When things go wrong, I go into a different gear." Laughing, Kate turned to her husband, saying: "William will know that I take quite a creative approach to resilience. 

"As a mother, making sure I’m speaking to my children and raising the progress and the effort involved I think is quite hard to do, and I think an important message for youngsters is that this growths mindset is so important for all the different challenges they face."

During their visit, Princess Kate, 41, joined sessions with young athletes and parents to observe how their mental fitness is being boosted by SportsAid. Paralympic swimmer Ellie Simmonds and Commonwealth champion netball player Ama Agbeze were both on hand to help with the sessions in their roles as SportsAid ambassadors.

princess kate at mental fitness workshop © Getty
The couple attended a mental fitness workshop run by SportsAid

Later in the morning, Prince William and Princess Kate joined young athletes and took part in two practical sessions designed to foster mental resilience. The duo took part in a challenging exercise which saw them attempt to score points in a netball hoop whilst up against the clock.

prince william playing netball with kate © Getty
Prince William joined his wife on the indoor netball court

Princess Kate went head-to-head against her husband and attempted to shoot as Prince William defended the goal post, though she missed four times. 

princess kate catching netball © Getty
Kate showed off her sporty side

Finally, William and Kate took part in a game of goalball – a visually impaired Paralympic sport whereby all participants are required to wear opaque eyeshades at all times to ensure fair competition. The sport was invented in 1946 to help rehabilitate veterans who had lost their sight during WWII.

Kate playing goalball © Getty
Kate played goalball, a visually impaired Paralympic sport, while attending a mental fitness workshop run by SportsAid

Princess Kate got well and truly stuck in, temporarily discarding her blazer for the Paralympic sport. The royal appeared to be in her element as she deftly tossed the ball whilst wearing a black eyemask. 

While Kate managed to successfully put a ball past the goalie, Prince William's attempt was saved. Reflecting on the challenge, William said: "It's really hard, so disorientating, I imagine it's a fun game though." 

For the special visit, Princess Kate looked her usual polished self in a bold cobalt blue Zara blazer which she teamed with a pair of dark skinny jeans and her trusty Veja trainers. She elevated her outfit with a pair of gold star hoop earrings and highlighted her features with a sweep of pretty pink blusher, lashings of mascara and a nude lipstick. 

Prince William wearing blindfold on indoor court © Getty
Prince William also got stuck in

Kate was also pictured sporting a minor finger injury, just weeks after the royal was snapped with her fingers taped up following a trampolining accident at home with her children. 

princess kate with hand injury© Getty
The royal sported a minor hand injury

At the time, a spokesperson for Kensington Palace said it was "a small injury," and "nothing serious." Meanwhile, Kate said: "I was jumping around on the trampoline," before adding: "I did put it on just to keep it safe," whilst gesturing to her plasters. 

Ellie Simmonds with princess kate in marlow © Getty
Ellie Simmonds was on hand to help with the sessions

Prince William, meanwhile, cut a casual figure in a navy jumper, comfortable jeans and mocha-hued trainers. 

The duo also spoke to a group of athletes about how to cope with stressful periods and how to build up resilience. Musing on the importance of mindset, Kate said that being able to change your mindset is a "really important skill." She went on to say: "It's a skill we could teach our youngest kids that would help our children later in life." 

kate wearing blue blazer © Getty
The mother-of-three stepped out in style

William, meanwhile, said: "For me it's mindset – I have to get myself in a certain zone. When things start going a bit wrong I click into a different gear. I see the end goal and I try and work out a path, like a maze, to get there, and I prioritise." 

The Princess of Wales has been Patron of SportsAid since 2013 and in 2022 Their Royal Highnesses visited SportsAid's Team England Futures programme at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Princess of Wales attends the Easter Mattins Service at Windsor Castle in 2023© Getty
The Princess of Wales is committed to breaking the stigma around mental health

As a couple, William and Kate have been working hard to support children's mental well-being for a number of years. Back in 2016, Their Royal Highnesses launched their Heads Together Campaign in an effort to tackle the stigma attached to mental health and to encourage people to speak more freely about mental wellbeing.

At the time of its launch, Prince William said: "When Catherine, Harry and I launched Heads Together, it is fair to say that we were ambitious about what it could achieve.

William, Kate and Harry wearing blue heads together headbands © Getty
William and Kate launched their Heads Together campaign in 2016

"It was Catherine who first realised that all three of us were working on mental health in our individual areas of focus. She had seen that at the core of adult issues like addiction and family breakdown, unresolved childhood mental health issues were often part of the problem."

On Wednesday, Prince William and Princess Kate paid a special visit to Birmingham where they took part in a series of mental health workshops in the Digbeth area of the West Midlands city.

Princess  of Wales makes a speech whilst hosting a forum to mark World Mental Health Day© Getty
Princess Kate gave a speech at the youth forum

Delivering a rare speech, Kate said: "For just as we need to restore, protect, and invest in our planet, so we must also restore, protect, and invest in the communities, relationships and people living on it. We believe that starts with you, our young people, but it also means all of us. Because when you think about it, we can each shape the world in which we live.

"So, we know, like you, that simply talking about mental health is just not enough. Because although many more conversations are now taking place, it is now vital we spend more time focusing on how we talk about our mental health – and crucially; What are we going to do, to build positive, preventative solutions to one of today's toughest challenges.

The Princess of Wales visited Nottingham Trent University© Getty
The Princess of Wales looked gorgeous in a buttercream ensemble on Wednesday

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the duo travelled to Milton Keynes and Nottingham respectively in support of World Mental Health Day. Princess Kate chatted with students at Nottingham Trent University while Prince William met emergency responders at the Milton Keynes Blue Light Hub.

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