Queen Sonja of Norway has been forced to cancel an event due to an infection. On Tuesday evening, Queen Sonja should have opened an exhibition with her own works at Galleri Bi-Z in Kristiansand. The exhibition had been planned for three years.
The Royal Court later confirmed the news and issued a short statement regarding Her Majesty`s health. “The queen has contracted an infection in the upper respiratory tract”, said the communication manager at the Palace, Sven Gjeruldsen. The Royal Court will not comment on how serious the disease is for the queen.
This is not the first time this year that the Queen has had to cancel an event on short notice. When the president of South Korea visited Norway in June, the Queen also had to cancel due to an infection, that time in the foot. In 2017, Queen Sonja was also forced to cancel engagements due to illness. Back then, it was back pain that kept her away from work. On Christmas day in 2016, she was also ill, and therefore did not attend the traditional church service in Holmenkollen chapel.
In recent days, however, Queen Sonja has participated in a number of events. A week ago, the King and Queen visited Bø in Telemark. On Wednesday last week, they also participated in the opening of the 164th Parliament, and the day after, the Queen visited the Activity House on Tøyen, where she met volunteers for a TV-charity event.
Queen Sonja had planned to attend the opening of a brand new exhibition in the Queen Sonja Art Stable in Oslo this week. This is also now cancelled. Princess Astrid, the older sister of King Harald, will now attend the opening on her behalf. King Harald is currently in Mallorca in connection with the World Cup in sailing. He and his crew will participate in the “Swan 50 class” during the voyage called “The Nations Trophy”. The King is scheduled to be in Mallorca until October 13.
