King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians were on hand to cheer on their country’s Men’s Field Hockey team for their first match of the 2024 Summer Olympics.Â
The Belgian king and queen attended the first men’s field hockey game of the Olympics. The Belgian Men’s Field Hockey Team won Gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after winning Silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics.Â
The team opened their Olympic run against Ireland, and played a hard fought match. They won 2-1 over Ireland with a goal from Tom Boon and another from Alexander Hendrickx.
After cheering the team on during the match, King Phillipe and Queen Mathilde headed down to the field to congratulate the players on their first 2024 Olympic win. They both spent several minutes chatting with the entire team about the game.Â
The Belgian king also joined athletes for lunch, queuing up to pick his meal from the health eating options on offer.
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde have had a busy few days in Paris. They met with French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday as he welcomed heads of state at the Élysée Palace before braving the rain at Opening Ceremonies. Mathilde chose a clear poncho to finish off her outfit for the ceremony, as guests along the Seine River waited through the rain.