Saturday 15 July 2017

The King of Tennis


If any Spanish player gets to the final of the US Open, they might want to get King Juan Carlos on a plane as quick as they can. For the second Grand Slam in a row, Juan Carlos has turned up to cheer on a Spanish star and had plenty to smile about as they've gone on to win. That's before we even take into account the fact he was also in Cardiff to see Real Madrid do the duodecima this summer. The happy ending at Wimbledon is part of what's been a golden week for Spain's monarchy. King Juan Carlos is the royal everyone wants cheering them on right now.




The man who ruled Spain for almost forty years was in the front row of the Royal Box at Wimbledon on July 15th 2017 to see Garbine Muguruza claim a famous victory in the Ladies' Singles. The number fourteen seed claimed a 7-5 6-0 victory over American Venus Williams to win the title for the first time. She became the first Spanish woman to win the title at Wimbledon in 23 years - the last was her coach, Conchita Martinez.  And Juan Carlos  was on his feet and applauding as Garbine Muguruza collected the famous Venus Rosewater dish from the Duke of Kent who, as President of the All England Club, has taken care of the prize presentations for decades.



King Juan Carlos then took the long walk to the players' lounge to congratulate Garbine Muguruza - a walk made longer by his mobility issues (he has had several hip operations). But he was all smiles as he celebrated with Spain's latest tennis superstar while the Spanish Royal Household tweeted its congratulations.  And the new champion looked pretty happy to meet her royal fan but then she must have been glad to see him there at all - he is a real good luck charm right now.



Just last month, King Juan Carlos was in the crowd to see Rafael Nadal claim his tenth French Open title. The two men are good friends and Rafa went over to the former monarch after his win to celebrate.



Earlier in June, Juan Carlos was in Cardiff where he watched Real Madrid set another sporting record as they claimed the Champions' League - the twelfth time they have been club champions of Europe. In fact, he was so happy about that he posed for a photo holding the trophy with the victorious team afterwards.




Today, he was bringing luck to a new Wimbledon star. Spain's monarchy has had its best week in a long time after the successful State Visit by Juan Carlos' son King Felipe who spent three days winning fans with his wife, Queen Letizia. Just as they left, dad arrivedf to see another big moment for Spain. Everything is looking rosy right now unless you're playing a Spanish star for a big sporting title. In which case, if this king turns up, get the plucky loser's speech ready. Juan Carlos and the House of Bourbon are on the rise again.

Photo credit: casareal Twitter.

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