Princess Royal watches rugby at Olympics on day one of Games

Anne watched South Africa take bronze after seeing off a brave challenge from Australia at the Stade de France.

The Princess Royal watches the rugby sevens Bronze Medal match between South Africa and Australia at the Stade de France on the first day of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games (Mike Egerton/PA) (PA Wire)

The Princess Royal appeared relaxed as she watched South Africa take on Australia in the rugby sevens on the first day of the Paris Olympics.

Anne sat beside her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, as she watched the contest for the bronze medal at the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis, on Saturday.

The match saw South Africa take bronze after seeing off a brave challenge from Australia to win 26-19.

The Princess’s trip to Paris is her first official overseas visit since being hit by a horse in June.

On Wednesday, the Princess, who is president of the British Olympic Association, gave a speech and posed for a group photo with members of Team GB at the British embassy in Paris.

She was the first member of the royal family to compete in the Olympic Games when she rode her late mother Queen Elizabeth II’s horse, Goodwill, in the equestrian three-day event at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games.

At the Paris event, she spoke to decorated Olympians Tom Daley and Helen Glover who were the team’s flag carriers in the opening ceremony.

The visit to Paris by the 73-year-old is the latest in her phased return to public duties after being rushed to Southmead Hospital in Bristol on June 23, staying for five nights after being injured while out walking on her Gatcombe estate in Gloucestershire.

Anne’s medical team said her concussion and head injuries were consistent with a potential impact from a horse’s head or legs but her concussion meant precise details of how the incident came about are not clear.