On Wednesday evening, Grand Duke Henri addressed guests at the Luxembourg Ladies Tennis Masters welcome dinner, sharing plans for his immediate future.
Grand Duke Henri, who abdicated last Friday, thanked guests for the "wonderful evening", and added that he would not be attending the tournament for good reason.
"As you all know, I'm now retired, so I am planning to leave."
Grand Duke Henri went on to explain that he and his wife intended to leave Luxembourg for a while. "Tomorrow we will take the car and leave for a time. I hope you can understand this."
His son, Grand Duke Guillaume, was appointed Luxembourg's head of state in an official ceremony last week.
Grand Duke Henri, a big tennis fan
One of the emotional high points of the welcome dinner was the Grand Duke's honouring. Since 1991, either Henri or a member of his family have attended the tournament in Kockelscheuer, or at the Coque in Kirchberg in recent years.
The tournament organisers wanted to thank the former Grand Duke for his longtime support, and thus awarded him a prize at the dinner, which would normally have been bestowed upon one of the players.
Winners of the Jana Nowotna Award
2017 Monica Niculesco
2018 Mandy Minella
2019 Andrea Petkovic
2020 Ana Ivanovic
2021 Julia Goerges
2022 Kim Clijsters
2023 Daniela Hantuchova
2024 Grand Duke Henri
