Kate Middleton show off her hockey skills on Olympic visit

The Duchess of Cambridge joined the team GB women’s hockey squad for a hit-around today and showed she had lost none of the skill that led her to captaining the first 11 at Marlborough College.

Middleton initiated the training session as part of  her role as Team GB and Paralympics GB 2012 Ambassador – obviously life on the royal circuit was getting a bit boring and she was keen to cut loose.

 

Earlier, she was said to be 'very excited' about her visit to the Olympic Park.

Both the women's and men's  teams are ranked 4th in the world and have high medal hopes.

 

Performance director David Faulkner, a member of the 1988 Olympic gold medal squad, said: 'We are six weeks away from team selection and are going into the Olympics in a really strong place.

Later, the Duchess swapped her jeans and trainers for a sophisticated grey dress by Orla Kiely  and joined the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall at Dulwich Picture Gallery, where she met youngsters involved in The Prince's Foundation for Children and the Arts.

 

The royals spoke to children who have taken part in the Great Art Quest - a programme that introduces youngsters to local galleries, professional artists and storytellers.

The portraits will also be displayed on 400 big screens in city centres, shopping centres and train stations across the UK.

Images: Getty