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'Grievous double fault'

Duchess of Kent gets Wimbledon snub

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Posted: Wednesday September 22, 1999 11:57 AM

The Duchess of Kent presents the trophy to Pete Sampras at Wimbledon in 1997. AP

LONDON (AP) -- The Duchess of Kent, the "royal face" of Wimbledon, is reportedly considering boycotting the Royal Box at future championships after tournament officials banned her from inviting children into the Centre Court enclosure.

In what it described as a "grievous double fault," The Daily Telegraph reported in a front-page story Wednesday that All England Club chairman John Curry sent a "curt letter" to the duchess informing her that children were unwelcome in the Royal Box.

Curry, who is responsible for issuing invitations to the 75-seat box, sent the letter following an incident at this year's tournament when the duchess was refused permission to sit in the box with the 12-year-old son of a friend.

The duchess was also asked to restrict the number of guests she invites into the box to one each day, the paper said.

The 66-year-old duchess, whose husband the Duke of Kent has been president of the All England Club for 30 years, reportedly received the letter last week.

The Daily Telegraph said the Duchess was considering boycotting the royal box -- except on finals days when she would continue to present the trophies -- in favor of acquiring her own tickets for Centre Court or Court One.

Curry, in a statement released Wednesday by the All England Club, said he regretted "any unintentional hurt" to the duchess.

"I wrote a personal letter to Her Royal Highness on behalf of the committee to thank her for her wonderful support of the Championship ... and also to say how much we appreciate what she has brought to the event over the years," he said.

"As happens every year with all our royal guests, I reconfirmed our guidelines concerning the invitation of additional guests and the subject of children.

"No royal has been limited to one guest in the past or will be in the future.

"Because of demand for space in the Royal Box, we also ask that, apart from children of the royal family, children are not invited as they exclude other worthy people from attending, many of whom contribute to tennis."

An avid tennis fan, the duchess has been involved in some memorable trophy presentations at Wimbledon.

In 1993, images of her consoling a tearful Jana Novotna, the losing women's finalist, were screened or printed around the world. Her presentation of trophies has become a Wimbledon tradition.

In an editorial, The Daily Telegraph said such "rudeness" was hurtful to the duchess, who is Wimbledon's "best loved and long-lasting face."

"The club has been accused of snobbery and arrogance before," the editorial said. "Even by its own standards, however, managing to offend its principal royal supporter must surely count as a grievous double fault."

 

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