Kate Middleton continues to back up her Sporty Spice reputation, revealing that she is fiercely competitive and that she has at least one fitness passion that husband Prince William thinks is “crazy.”
Back in September, Princess Kate, William, and Princess Anne sat down with Mike Tindall, husband of Zara Tindall, Anne’s daughter, for an episode of his podcast The Good, the Bad, and the Rugby.
“I really generally love all sports,” the Princess of Wales told Tindall, a former professional rugby player. “Personally, I love swimming. I absolutely love it. The colder the better. I absolutely love it. Slightly to the point where William says, ‘Catherine, you’re crazy.’”
And, as Tindall revealed, she gets others to go along with her on her polar bear swims.
“It’s dark and it’s raining and I’ll go and seek out cold water,” Kate said of her hobby.
She and William are also wildly competitive in athletics, including when they’re playing against one another.
“I don’t think we’ve managed to finish a game of tennis, the two of us,” Kate said. “It becomes a mental challenge between the two of us.”
“I’m not going to say you’re uber competitive, but…” Tindall said, laughing. “I’ve seen her play beer pong!”
She also revealed that she and William have “recently got into playing paddle tennis.”
As it turns out, paddle tennis (also called padel) is a close cousin of, you guessed it, pickleball. Very on trend for the young royals.
Listen to Vanity Fair’s DYNASTY podcast now.