Exhausted after a gruelling all-night bike race around London, Princess Eugenie gratefully collapses into her mother's waiting arms at the finish line. Sarah, Duchess of York waited proudly with balloons and a beaming smile as her daughter completed a 64-mile charity ride.
The 22-year-old joined 3,000 cyclists who took part in the Nightrider event to raise money for good causes. Eugenie's epic seven-hour effort brought in a sum of £9,000 – part of which will support the construction of a cricket stadium in Rwanda. Funds will also be distributed to the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, of which she is patron. As someone who suffered from Scoliosis – a condition which causes curvature of the spine – the Princess' contribution carries extra significance. "When I was 12, I had an operation at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and they corrected the curving in my spine" she told Sky News.
"I've got two 12-inch rods and eight screws going up my back keeping me straight and they fuse together with my spine so now I can't really live without them." Eugenie's sporting triumph comes after her fashionable turn at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Both she and her sister, Beatrice, shone by their grandmother's side as she marked sixty years on the throne. In the first interview given by a royal since the historic event, Eugenie poignantly talked about the loving relationship the monarch shares with Prince Philip."They are the most incredibly supportive couple to each other," she said. "Grandpa was unfortunately taken ill and for Granny to come and do that alone was probably quite testing and I think he is her rock, really, and she is his."
Eugenie also shared her family's delight at the support given to the Queen by the public in the absence of the Duke. "To see that many people out there, I'm so amazed by the amount of love and support and gratitude that everyone has for Granny," Eugenie added.