Tensions between Meghan Markle and Dr. Sophie Chandauka reportedly contributed to Prince Harry‘s abrupt resignation from Sentebale.

At a charity polo event, the Duchess of Sussex allegedly snubbed Dr. Chandauka, sparking controversy at the time.

The Sentebale chair has since spoken on the moment, claiming that Prince Harry asked her to defend Meghan Markle against the backlash and she refused.

Meghan and Dr. Chandauka’s alleged strained relationship reportedly played a significant role in Harry’s sudden resignation from the organization he helped launch.

According to sources close to the situation, “The problem, though, started with Meghan,” as she “doesn’t like Sophie.”

Speaking with the Daily Mail, an insider revealed that things began to unravel following an awkward encounter at the Royal Salute Polo Challenge held in Florida in April 2024.

The source claimed Meghan had told organizers she wouldn’t attend, only to later arrive at the event with close friend Serena Williams.

Dr. Chandauka had reportedly hoped to introduce Meghan to key attendees and donors, but Meghan was allegedly uninterested in engaging.

“She [Dr. Chandauka] wanted to take her around, to introduce her to other people, but Meghan didn’t want to mingle or engage with those supporting the event,” the insider said.

They added: “She went off to the tent. Sophie found it rude. Staff working that day were asked to get champagne for Meghan, they were scrambling around — Sentebale and Archewell staff were both having to do that. Sentebale were not happy about this at all.”

There was also an uncomfortable exchange between Meghan and Dr. Chandauka during the charity polo event in Florida that didn’t go unnoticed.

Footage from the event shows Meghan repeatedly encouraging Dr. Chandauka to stand beside her for a group photo rather than next to Harry.

“You want to come over here?” Meghan is heard saying, signaling the Zimbabwean-born finance expert to move. Dr. Chandauka then ducks under the trophy to switch places, prompting Meghan to comment with a brief, “Lovely.”

During a chat with Sky News’ Trevor Phillips, Dr. Chandauka noted that the unplanned appearance created coordination issues.

“We would have been really excited had we known ahead of time [Meghan was coming], but we didn’t,” she explained. “And so the choreography went badly on stage because we had too many people on stage.”

The interaction between Dr. Chandauka and Meghan quickly gained traction online, fueling media speculation.

In response to the attention, Harry allegedly requested that Dr. Chandauka release a statement publicly supporting Meghan, which she declined.

“Not because I didn’t care about the Duchess,” Dr. Chandauka explained. “But because I knew what would happen if I did so, number one. And number two, because we cannot be an extension of the Sussexes.”

A source recently shared with the Daily Telegraph that Harry was not pleased with the chairwoman’s refusal to defend Meghan.

This allegedly prompted the Duke to chastise her in a personal message that was said to have an “unpleasant” tone and “imperious” language, which left the charity chair “upset.”

Last month, Harry stepped down from Sentebale, the charity he co-founded with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho in 2006 to honor the legacies of their late mothers.

The pair released a joint statement addressing their resignation, calling it a “devastating” but necessary decision.

They cited ongoing tensions between Dr. Chandauka and the board of trustees as the reason for their departure.

“What’s transpired is unthinkable,” they said. “We are in shock that we have to do this.”

Harry and Seeiso continued: “With heavy hearts, we have resigned for our roles as patrons of the organization until further notice, in support of and in solidarity with the board of trustees. It is devastating that the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair.”

Despite stepping away from formal roles, Harry, 40, and Seeiso, 58, emphasized their lasting connection to the organization.

They said, “We may no longer be patrons, we will always be its founders, and we will never forget what this charity is capable of achieving when it is in the right care.”

However, Dr. Chandauka attributed the resignations of Harry and the charity’s board of trustees to what she describes as “misogynoir” and systemic misconduct within the organization.

In an interview with The London Times, Chandauka pushed back against the public narrative surrounding the departures, calling it misleading and rooted in prejudice.

“Beneath all the victim narrative and fiction that has been syndicated to press is the story of a woman who dared to blow the whistle about issues of poor governance, weak executive management, abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny, misogynoir and the cover-up that ensued,” she said.

She went on to suggest that, for Harry, Prince Seeiso, and certain trustees, Sentebale may have been a “vanity project.”

However, she claimed that for her, it has always been about upholding the charity’s mission and serving the youth.