William and Kate battled monsoon-like rain and choppy waves as they raced against each other at a regatta in the Bahamas.

Torrential downpours dogged the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s first full day in the Caribbean nation, joking to schoolchildren that they’d brought England’s weather with them.

They changed from their smart attire into casual shorts and short-sleeved tops to take part in yesterday’s Platinum Jubilee Regatta in the waters off Montagu Beach.

Just a few minutes after leaving land, to watch the end of a race between young people from the Royal Nassau Sailing Club, the heavens opened.

But the couple pressed ahead and joined crews sailing 21ft Class B sloops for a race in the ocean. William steered his boat to victory around a three-and-a-half mile course after being handed control of the tiller once they had rounded the first point.

Unfortunately for Kate, her boat suffered a technical problem with its rudder that lost the vessel precious time at the start.

‘They had to drop the sail down, which cost them a good 50 metres at the start of the race,’ said Jimmie Lowe, director of sailing at the Bahamas Sailing Association.

He explained that visibility on the course around waters off the capital Nassau had been down to 150ft at one point, which delayed the start.

William came away with bragging rights after securing his second consecutive win on water over Kate, who came last.

The couple finish their eight day tour of the Caribbean today, which has been dogged by rows and protests over Britain’s colonial legacy. Their visits to Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas were to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee this year.

But they are also widely being seen as an attempt to dissuade Commonwealth nations from following in the footsteps of Barbados by becoming republics.

The duke and duchess put on brave faces throughout, with William expressing ‘profound sorrow’ over Britain’s role in the slave trade.

But still they faced protests demanding reparations and a formal apology from the Royal Family, and became the centre of a row over indigenous land in Belize.

William stopped short of saying sorry for slavery, just as his father Charles had not apologised during his trip to witness Barbados become a republic in November.

Yesterday’s Platinum Jubilee Regatta was a chance for people to celebrate the return of racing for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic two years ago.

It isn’t the first time Kate has lost to her husband in a race, having been defeated in the King’s Cup charity regatta off the Isle of Wight in 2019 when her boat was disqualified.

However the duchess triumphed when the ultra competitive couple raced yachts in New Zealand in 2014.

Yesterday’s race was also a tip of the hat to William’s late grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh as the young people were from the Royal Nassau Sailing Club supported by Philip.

Philip watched the King’s Cup Series from the Royal Nassau Sailing Club in 1959, enjoyed sailing there, and became Honorary Commodore and Honorary Life Member of the club.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Source: Read Full Article