William reveals his 11-year-old son Prince George’s daredevil hobby during visit to a community pool

The Prince of Wales has revealed his eldest son Prince George is an avid scuba diver during his visit to a community pool this afternoon.

Prince William, 42, chatted to Team GB Olympians including Adam Peaty and Tom Dean at Birtley Community Pool in the North East as he reopened the site.

While in conversation with the elite swimmers, he revealed that he and his super-sporty wife Kate, 42, ‘adore’ the sport – and their 11-year-old son has picked up a more daring underwater activity.

‘Catherine and I both adore swimming. George loves scuba diving,’ he said.

‘He was ten years old, we took him under, thinking he’d freak out, but he absolutely loved it. It’s just introduced him to the world of water..’ 

During a visit to Birley Community Pool in the North East this afternoon, the Prince of Wales discussed his son’s daredevil hobby

Elsewhere during the visit, father-of-three William revealed why he wasn’t present at the Olympics in Paris to cheer on Team GB this August, and instead chose to support the team from home.

Tom asked William: ‘Did you manage to get out there [to Paris]?’

William replied: ‘No I was so keen to come but I have to say after reading someone’s interview about Covid [looking at Adam Peaty – who tested positive during the games] I decided, because my wife was obviously having chemo, that I didn’t want to risk bringing Covid home, so Adam very kindly reminded me that that was still a thing! 

‘But we watched the whole thing. We were glued to it every day.’

Prince George (pictured with his father at the Euro 2024 final in Germany) loved scuba diving despite William and Kate thinking he’d ‘freak out’ over it

During the visit William also met Paralympians Maisie Summers-Newton and Louise Fiddes, who showcased their medals.

They continued to discuss the impact of community pools closing down.

Prince William said: ‘We’ve heard stories up and down the countries of pools closing down, so we thought: ‘no, we want to be able to stop this’. We want to replicate this [Birtley’s pool re-opening] across the country because swimming is such an important part of life. We’re an island nation, we should all have access to learn how to swim.’

The Prince also spoke to Tom about his recent departure from Strictly Come Dancing.

‘Robbery was the word he used, very kind of him,’ said Tom, who added that William said his wife Catherine was a ‘big fan’ of the show.

Today the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales announced a new partnership with the Birtley Community Pool to provide swimming lessons and lifeguard training.

Almost one in three children in the UK currently leave primary education unable to swim, according to a report from Swim England in May 2021.

As well as funding Birtley’s pool, the Royal Foundation also announced they were forming a partnership with Tom’s company ‘Swim School’ to provide 1,000 ‘learn to swim packages’ to children across the UK next year.

Tom, who is a three-time Olympic swimming champion, said: ‘I was talking to William…and we’re going to be working together to provide swimming lessons for places in need…projects like this are brilliant and working with the Royal Foundation is a true honour.

‘[Prince William’s visit] is a testament to what this community has done. Getting that nod and recognition from himself [and] The Royal Foundation is really special.’

Aides added that swimming was going to be a ‘big focus’ of the Foundation going forward.

As he greeted royal fans earlier today, William betrayed barely a hint of his huge night at Villa Park yesterday evening as his beloved Aston Villa beat Bayern Munich 1-0 in the UEFA Champions League. 

However, as he said hello to people who had gathered to see him, the father-of-three did admit he was still feeling a little bit hoarse.

Speaking to crowds before entering the venue, William was told: ‘Aston Villa won last night!’

An upbeat William responded: ‘They did, I know! I lost my voice because I was shouting a bit too much last night.’ 

Prince William admitted he was still feeling hoarse during a visit to Birtley Community Pool this afternoon

Britain’s Prince William, Prince of Wales, poses for a picture with British Olympians and Paralympians Adam Peaty (R), Tom Dean (L), Maisie Summers-Newton (front R) and Louise Fiddes (2ndL)

William beamed as he chatted with Peaty, who recently popped the question to Gordon Ramsay‘s daughter Holly.  

‘Good morning everyone, so nice to see you!’, the royal said, as he joined local people to celebrate the reopening of the pool and the unity of the community after a fundraising bid hit its target of £20,000. 

He also took the time to highlight the importance of swimming as an essential skill, with almost one in three children in the UK currently leaving primary education unable to swim.   

The Prince met with children at a primary school who were taking part in their first swimming lesson at the pool, as well as observing a lifeguard training session.

He appeared very upbeat as he stopped to chat to royal fans and schoolchildren.  

William also announced new plans for the The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales charity to partner with Birtley Community Pool to offer swimming lessons to people in the vicinity.

The partnership will also provide lifeguard training to locals, in order to give young people the chance to learn new skills and give them the ability to save lives.

During the visit, William spoke to Jonathan Carlisle, founder of Swim City. 

Carlisle told reporters from Chronicle Live that the reopening of the pool was all thanks to Prince William. 

He said: ‘First of all we spoke about Aston Villa last night! And then a reform of Swim England and what we think can improve.’

Prince William had spent last night cheering on his beloved Aston Villa as they defeated Bayern Munich in the Champions League 

Prince William made a splash as he visited Birtley Community Pool in Tyne and Wear this afternoon 

Prince William met with Olympic royalty today during a visit to Birtley Community Pool. Pictured with Adam Peaty

William observed a swimming lesson and spoke with schoolchildren during his visit

Britain’s Prince William, Prince of Wales, attends a lifeguard coaching training session during his visit to Birtley Community Pool

William also announced new plans for the The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales charity to partner with Birtley Community Pool to offer swimming lessons to people in the vicinity. Pictured speaking to staff

Asked how important he thinks the Prince’s visit has been, he gestured to the crowds and said: ‘I mean, just look. It’s been open two weeks and look how many people turned up today just to see him. 

‘It adds that cherry on the cake… but also, what he’s done before this with the foundation and helping the pool reopen. The pool wouldn’t be back open without him.’ 

The swimming facility hopes to welcome 16,000 people per month including 6,500 children.

Formerly known as Birtley Swim Centre, Birtley Community Pool officially reopened its doors on September 16, just over a after it first closed in 2023 by the council due to lack of funding.

After it shut, determined volunteers set up the Birtley Community Aquatic Centre, with the hopes of being able to reopen the venue as a non-profit venture.

The community worked hard to crowdfund the cash to reopen the beloved swimming pool, and previously said they were ‘delighted’ to have reached their target for reopening.

Britain’s Prince William, Prince of Wales (R), speaks with British Olympian Tom Dean

Britain’s Prince William, Prince of Wales addresses the audience during a visit to Birtley Community Pool

William also took the time to highlight the importance of swimming as an essential skill, with almost one in three children in the UK currently leaving primary education unable to swim

Britain’s Prince William, Prince of Wales, speaks with British Paralympian Maisie Summers-Newton (right)

William was thrilled to pet a dog as he met with members of the crowd

William and swimmer Adam Peaty took part in a round table discussion, before the Prince of Wales gave a speech

Huge crowds turned out to catch a glimpse of the Prince of Wales, who announced huge plans for his charity to partner with the swimming pool

While he chatted to royal fans outside the venue, William admitted he’d ‘lost his voice’ after cheering on his beloved Aston Villa last night

Despite the sore head, William was as friendly as ever as he shook hands with schoolchildren

William appeared animated as he spoke with British Olympians and Paralympians 

Adam Ramsay recently became engaged to Holly, who is the daughter of celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay 

‘As a community, we were quite distraught at its closure. We really came together as a set of volunteers to support each other,’ said Yvonne Probert, chair of trustees at Birtley Community Pool in a video posted to social media by Kensington Palace. 

She continued: ‘One of the things that’s been really important to us is all the support we’ve had locally.’ 

Gateshead Council approved a 50-year operating lease to BCAC and they were given the keys to the baths at the end of May 2024.

Volunteers even managed to secure a refurbishment with the help of local businesses and tradespeople.

And over the last new months, volunteers of the BCAC have seen help from the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales, who have worked closely with the community to connect them with partners and help them in achieving their goal.

The community also secured funding from Sport England and the Community Ownership Fund. 

Through the Royal Foundation’s Community Impact Programme, Kate and William’s charity have also helped out with funding, offered bursaries for local children’s swimming lessons, as well as helping recruit a a Community Outreach Officer to encourage more children to swim.

The visit demonstrated William’s clear passion for encouraging people to learn to swim

Last night William enthusiastically cheered on his beloved team – of whom he is a lifelong fan – from the stands 

It comes after William enjoyed in an evening of football yesterday, after spending the match cheering his beloved Aston Villa to victory against Bayern Munich.

The Prince of Wales even confessed his lost his voice cheering on his team at the Champions League game on Wednesday.

The prince is a lifelong fan of the Birmingham-based Premier League team took geat pleasure in being part of the crowd for its first home game in European football’s elite competition for 41 years.

From appearing tense to putting his arms up in the air as he cheered, William, dressed in a navy jacket and sporting his fan-favourite beard, had been through all the emotions as he watched his team at Villa Park stadium in the UK’s second city. 

Television footage showed a jubilant William cheering and hugging those next to him at full time, as his team beat German giants Bayern 1-0 in a repeat of their 1982 European Cup final win.

The Prince of Wales appeared to go through a rollercoaster of emotions during the nail-biting match

A jubilant William couldn’t contain his emotions as his team won the game 1-0 against all odds, giving a delighted thumbs up to another member of the crowd 

Jhon Duran of Aston Villa celebrates with teammates after leading his team to a shock victory during the UEFA Champions League clash

The prince – known to be a huge football fan – also made fists in victory, as well as giving a delighted thumbs up to another member of the crowd. After the game, William said: ‘I’ve lost my voice. I can’t quite believe it. 42 years.’

His outing comes after the Prince and Princess of Wales, in a rare appearance, met an aspiring photographer with an aggressive form of cancer after inviting the teenager to take pictures at investitures at Windsor Castle.

The royal, who is patron of the English Football Association, met members of Villa’s 1982 European Cup – as it was formerly known – winning team before watching the much-anticipated match. 

Television footage showed William clapping and cheering at Villa Park as home fans thought they took the lead through Pau Torres but the goal was ruled out for offside.

Before the Champions League match, William met Villa’s 1982 European Cup-winning squad, who beat Bayern 1-0 in the final.

A post on the Prince and Princess of Wales’s X social media account read: ’42 years on, our 1982 European Cup winning legends are here on an historic night for @AVFCOfficial.

‘Ready for the first game on home turf in this year’s European adventure… £UTV (Up the Villa).’