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Queen Elizabeth will miss the Epsom Derby in order to “pace herself” for the Jubilee celebrations.
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The 96-year-old monarch has only missed the annual horseracing event in Surrey twice before during her 70-year-reign but will not be attending the event -which takes place midway through the Jubilee celebrations – on Saturday as she continues to suffer “ mobility concerns.”
A source told The Sunday Times: “It is becoming increasingly unlikely that the Queen will attend (Epsom) due to her episodic mobility concerns. The Queen is pacing herself.”
It is thought that her daughter Anne, Princess Royal and her family will be attending the event on behalf of her mother as Charles, Prince and Wales and William, Duke of Cambridge will read out tributes to the monarch while she will watch the event on television as she rests in Balmoral.
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The Queen – who is a prolific horse owner herself but all three her horses entered for the Derby have been withdrawn upon the news that she will not attend – first missed the event back in 1956 while on aa state visit to Sweden and once again in 1984 while marking the 40th anniversary of D-Day in France.
It comes almost a week after the Queen used a buggy to get around at the Chelsea Flower Show last Monday and was driven around the gardens for “comfort.”
A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman told the BBC: “Adjustments have been made for the Queen’s comfort.”
The Queen suffered a series of health problems earlier this year, including being diagnosed with COVID-19 in February.
But she’s been much more visible in recent weeks, when she’s attended a series of events in the build-up to the Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
The monarch has attended the Chelsea Flower Show more than 50 times, but this year’s edition marked the first official outing for her buggy.