Charles shares affectionate moment with Duchess of York as race win hopes dashed
Charles kissed Sarah's hand when the pair met in the famous racecourse's parade ring, as the duchess' daughter Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank watched.
The King has known Sarah for decades but she appeared out of the royal fold until invited to spend Christmas Day with the King and Queen at Sandringham in 2023.
King Charles kisses the hand of Sarah, Duchess of York (Andrew Matthews/PA)
Among the famous racegoers was Harry Potter author JK Rowling who was spotted in a box at the grounds with her husband Neil Murray, former defence secretary Ben Wallace and the King's niece Zara Tindall.
On the track the King and Queen's racing pot of gold failed to materialise when their horse Purple Rainbow was well beaten in the aptly named Sandringham Stakes.
The royal couple watched the fast-paced race from the royal box and were glued to monitors, with the King animated in the closing stages of the mile-long sprint.
He bobbed on the spot as if willing on his jockey Warren Fentiman but Purple Rainbow, who was not fancied by the bookies, did not challenge the front runners.
The couple looked up in the closing stages to watch the race as it came past the stands but Never Let Go crossed the line first and the King and his wife were left opened-mouthed.
The King and Queen watch their horse being beaten in the Sandringham Stakes (James Manning/PA)
The touching greeting between the King and his former sister-in-law, who still remains close to ex-husband the Duke of York, may be in part due to their cancer journeys.
The head of state is receiving ongoing cancer care while Sarah has spoken publicly about her own treatment for skin and breast cancer, undergoing a mastectomy.
At the start of the day racegoers were given a respite from this week's sweltering conditions but the hazy cloud over the Berkshire racecourse burned away by late afternoon pushing up temperatures.
Staff were handing out free bottles of water and Will Aitkenhead, head of corporate and industry affairs at the track, said they had worked hard overnight to provide more shaded areas.
The King and Queen were joined in the royal box by Camilla's old school friend Lady Cavendish and her husband Lord Cavendish, the former Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad, the Queen's Companion the Marchioness of Lansdowne and musical maestro Lord Lloyd-Webber.
JK Rowling in the stands at Royal Ascot (Andrew Matthews/PA)
Charles and Camilla will have another chance at racing success – after two of their horses were well beaten earlier this week – when The King's Falcon runs in the Golden Gate Stakes, during Royal Ascot's final day on Saturday.
The late Queen was a passionate owner and breeder of thoroughbreds and had more than 20 Royal Ascot winners during her 70-year reign.
Charles and Camilla have taken on her stable of horses and enjoyed their first Royal Ascot winner in 2023 when their horse Desert Hero triumphed in the King George V Stakes.
Royal Ascot is as much a social occasion as a sporting event and towards the end of the day an online video emerged of two men apparently fighting at the grounds where tens of thousands had enjoyed the day without incident.
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