Wimbledon champion Murray receives royal honor
Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, right, receives his Order of the British Empire (OBE) medal from the from Britain’s Prince William, during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace, London Thursday Oct. 17, 2013. AP
LONDON — After winning two grand slams and an Olympic gold medal, Andy Murray has been given the royal seal of approval.
Murray received his Officer of the Order of the British Empire medal by Prince William on Thursday, having been awarded the honor in Queen Elizabeth II’s New Year’s honors list for services to tennis following his victories at the U.S. Open and London Olympics in 2012.
The Scot, who also won Wimbledon three months ago, nearly didn’t make it to the ceremony, though.
Hours before making his way to Buckingham Palace, Murray tweeted: “In the middle of a drug test hahaha I’m goin to be late!!”
Murray, who is currently out of action after undergoing season-ending back surgery, attended the ceremony with his girlfriend and parents and spoke to Prince William for about a minute while receiving the honor.
“He just asked me about my surgery and asked me how I had been since Wimbledon,” said Murray, who added that he would back training in four weeks.
Murray also revealed that Prince William’s wife, Kate, wrote a letter to him after Wimbledon.
“I told him her handwriting is fantastic,” Murray said.
