King and Queen Consort joined by Princess Anne and Prince Edward to host Olympians reception

Hundreds of Olympic and Paralympic heroes including Tom Daley and Lauren Steadman gathered at Buckingham Palace for a reception with the King and Queen Consort last night.

More than 200 medallists who won gold, silver and bronze at the Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 Winter Games were invited to the event to celebrate their incredible achievements.

And the King and Queen Consort were in the presence of an Olympian before their guests arrived as they were joined by silver medallist Princess Anne, as well as Prince Edward and the Duke of Gloucester. 

The King and Queen Consort were joined by Charles’s siblings Princess Anne and Prince Edward, as well as the Duke of Gloucester

The King couldn’t help but smile as he shook the hand of Tom Daley, Olympic gold medallist for diving

It is the first time the three siblings have been pictured together since the Queen’s funeral last month – but notably Prince Andrew, no longer a working royal, was not present. 

An animated King Charles was jovial and grinned, even appearing to punch the air, as he met the stars.

The King, 73, has had a busy day of engagements including his second weekly audience with the prime minister Rishi Sunak, as well as an earlier reception at Buckingham Palace which celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Resettlement of British Asians from Uganda.

Despite his incredibly busy day the new monarch has maintained his smile while greeting people throughout – and also seemed unfazed by the looming UK air date of series five of The Crown.

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The Queen Consort wore a mauve crushed velvet dress as she chatted to Olympic medallists Laura Collett and Olver Townend

The King shook hands with stars inclusing Frazer Clarke (left) Imani Lansiquot and Sarah Storey at the reception

Frazer Clarke bowed his head as he shook hands with the King at the reception while Imani Lansiquot shared a joke with the Queen Consort in the background

Tom Daley, who won an Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics in diving, chatted to the King with Jack Laugher and Mathew Lee

King Charles showed Buckingham Palace was back in action as he hosted Olympic and Paralympic heroes at a reception this evening. Pictured: The King chatting to Olympic medallists Jack Laugher and Mathew Lee

King Charles III meets Olympic medallists, from left, Eve Muirhead, Jennifer Dodds and Hailey Duff at Buckingham Palace

The King shook hands with the Olympic medallists as he took part in the Palace’s second reception of the day

The King had a chat with some medallists at the Palace in London as he welcomed them to the reception

The King appeared a little distracted as he chatted to some Olympic medallists at the reception 

Yesterday it emerged that the new series will show a four-minute-long depiction of Princess Diana’s interview with Martin Bashir in 1995, which the royal family has since heavily criticised.

After Lord Dyson’s independent review into the BBC panorama interview found that Bashir had ‘acted inappropriately’ in obtaining the interview, Prince William delivered a scathing statement branding the incident ‘unethical’ as he begged media outlets never to broadcast it again.

Despite the revelation about the new series of the Netflix royal drama, both King Charles and the Prince of Wales have carried out their royal duties with smiles on their faces today.

This evening the royals put aside any fears they might have about the new seried of The Crown as they were joined by the Earl of Wessex, patron of the British Paralympic Association, and the Princess Royal, president of the British Olympic Association.

Members of the Team GB rowing team looked dapper in navy blue suits as they beamed for a photo at Buckingham Palace

David Smith, a Paralympic rower, smiled for a photo as he attended the reception at Buckingham Palace

Olympian Tom Daley, who won a gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in diving, attended the reception

Lauren Steadman, a paralympian who competes in swimming, the triathlon and who has also been a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing, wsa pictured at the reception

Samantha Kinghorn, a world champion wheelchar racer from Scotland, wore a stylish blue dress and dogtooth blazer as she attended the reception

For the third successive summer Olympic Games, Team GB netted more than 60 medals – with the team winning 64 in Japan, cementing their status as a leading force in world sport.

Paralympics GB finished second in the medal table with 124.

Memorable moments included divers Tom Daley and Matty Lee winning gold in the men’s synchronised 10m platform, while gymnast Max Whitlock retained his pommel horse title.

Dame Sarah Storey won three gold medals at Tokyo 2020 in cycling events, taking her tally of Paralympic golds to 17 and making her the most successful British Paralympian, while Hannah Cockroft defended her Paralympic 800m T34 title to win her seventh Paralympic title.

The postponement of Tokyo 2020 to the summer of 2021 meant a short six-month gap to the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, where Team GB’s curlers did exceptionally well.

Eve Muirhead led the women’s curling team of Vicky Wright, Jen Dodds and Hailey Duff to gold, while Team GB men’s won silver.