Prince Louis wants to try his hand at becoming a ball boy, the Princess of Wales has suggested at Wimbledon.
Kate arrived at the championships on Saturday afternoon, where she will watch the ladies’ singles final between Czech players Karolina Muchova and Linda Noskova before stepping onto Centre Court to present the trophy to the winner.
At the south-west London grounds, the princess, wearing a bright strawberry red belted top and pleated midi skirt, met Jenna Fontanilla, who works in Wimbledon’s court services team.
During their conversation, Kate brought up the topic of ball boys and ball girls, adding that her and William’s youngest child, eight-year-old Louis, had been asking her questions about the role.
Ms Fontanilla, 18, told the Press Association: “She told me about how Louis was asking her about how to become a ball boy, and we were talking about how much hard work it is to be on court and how we work alongside the ball kids, and it’s just so lovely.”
Describing Kate as “so genuine”, Ms Fontanilla, from Sutton, south London, said the princess put her at ease.
Ms Fontanilla said: “She’s so genuine. It felt so easy. I thought I was going to be really nervous, but she made it so easy. The conversation was very natural.”
She added: “Looking at her through the doors, it was just: ‘Oh my gosh, she’s here’, and then I overheard her with the other conversations, it just felt so natural, and it put peace over me.
“And then when she was right there, reaching out to shaking my hand, I was like: ‘Oh my gosh, which hand, which hand?’, and then I got there, and she was just, oh, that smile.
“It just brings you back, and she’s so genuine.
“The conversation was just so lovely. She’s a people’s princess, everyone says she’s one of the people, and I love it.”
Ms Fontanilla told Kate she got her role at the championships thanks to the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative (WJTI).
She said: “They provide free tennis to a handful of schools around Merton, and I was one of the lucky few that got picked when I was four years old.
“The WJTI came to my junior school, saw us run around, and picked out who had the most enthusiasm and the most grit and the most potential in tennis.
“And throughout the years, I’ve been attending more and more tennis sessions, getting more into the sport.
“And before you know it, they give me such opportunities, such as being part of the court services team, working at the championships, and, as you saw now, meeting the princess.”
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