The gloves were on this morning as a glamorous Catherine Duchess of Cambridge, along with Princes William and Harry tried their hand at boxing during the launch of the Heads Together campaign for mental health.
The trio are heading up the new initiative focusing on providing practical help to those suffering from the stigma and issues surrounding mental health
“By putting our heads together we can all make a huge difference,” Prince Harry said at the event.
Before the Duchess, Duke and Prince delivered their serious message, they lightened things up with a bit of a sparring session to send the message that exercise can improve mental health.
The royals arrive at the Heads Together reception before their boxing class.
Cutting a stylish figure in a Banana Republic skirt and white blouse, Kate pulled on a pair of gloves to punch hand pads worn by former professional boxer Duke McKenzie.
The 34-year-old laughed at her own efforts but Duke wasn’t so quick to dismiss her, stating the graceful brunette had a “mean right hand!”
Check out the royals’ boxing form! Post continues below.
Meanwhile Harry was all business, delivering the punches hard and fast. “He couldn’t wait to get the gloves on,” Duke quipped.
“He was giving me the eye and couldn’t wait to take me out!”
During the session, the 31-year-old revealed he often uses boxing as a way to get rid of stress.
It showed, with the former professional boxer saying of the young prince, “I’ve boxed my whole life, and he’s got a fair punch on him!”
Mental health is an important issue for the young royals, with all three having previously spoken out on various topics in the past. They all gave stirring speeches during the event in support of the initiative.
Wills tried his hardest to look serious when donning the gloves.
“Too often people feel afraid to admit they are struggling with mental health,” Kate said. ”This fear of judgement stops people from getting the help they need, which can destroy families and lives.”
Her brother-in-law continued: “We do not want prejudice and fear to stand in the way of people getting the help they need to cope with life.
“As the year progresses, the three of us – working with all of you in this room and others who will join us along the way – want to come up with practical ways of providing everyone who needs help with the right support and care.”
Harry didn’t pull any punches!
The Duke and father-of-two finished off the strong messages: “The more we talk about mental health, the more normal the topic becomes, and the more we feel able to open up and seek support.
“By asking for help, by telling a friend we have a problem, by asking someone else how they feel – by having a conversation – we take the first step to feeling better about ourselves. And the first step to being able to cope better with the ups and the downs of life.”
The royal group hope their involvement along with the partner charities involved in the initiative will help restart and maintain the national conversation on mental health.
As if we needed any more of a reason to love them!
