Hero BLM supporter who carried rival protester to safety during clashes at anti-racism demo makes his way to Wimbledon after being invited into Royal Box

• Patrick Hutchinson was invited to the exclusive Royal Box to watch the tennis
• Mr Hutchinson will be rubbing shoulders with Wimbledon’s important guests
• He rose to fame after he scooped up a protester during the demo in June 2020

The hero Black Lives Matter supporter who carried a rival protester to safety during clashes an an anti-racism demonstration has made his way to Wimbledon today.

Patrick Hutchinson stepped in and saved a battered protester in June 2020 – and he revealed this morning that he was invited to the exclusive Royal Box to watch the tennis. 

Posting on Instagram, Mr Hutchinson told his followers he was on the way to the courts in Wimbledon, South London, wearing a suave cream suit and dapper sunglasses.

And he posted his invitation, signed by chairman Ian Hewitt, to the Royal Box – where he’ll be rubbing shoulders with Wimbledon’s most important guests of the day.

The box, which has 74 seats for hand-picked esteemed spectators, boasts fantastic views of the centre court, with guests also getting an invite to the Clubhouse for lunch, tea and drinks.

Mr Hutchinson rose to fame after he scooped up a semi-conscious protester whose ‘life was under threat’ during the stampede-like protest in June 2020. 

Looking suave: Patrick Hutchinson stepped out and made his way to Wimbledon to watch the tennis today after being invited to the Royal Box

The hero BLM supporter showed followers that he had been invited into the exclusive box for today’s matches

The hero who carried the protester to safety in the midst of clashes with anti-racism protesters in London in June 2020

Mr Hutchinson was praised when an image of him lifting the bloodied white protester onto his shoulders amid violent clashes near Trafalgar Square in June 2020 went viral.

The personal trainer and grandfather, who relatives said ‘wouldn’t hurt a fly,’ revealed why he intervened and what he hopes his actions will inspire from people in future.

The Royal Box at Wimbledon is filled with guests who ‘reflect the Club’s desire to recognise people who work towards making global society better for all,’ according to the chairman.

Yesterday, the exclusive seats were filled with ‘entertainers, inventors, innovators, activists, tennis administrators and medical experts’ that have provided ‘stellar public service in all walks of life.’

The guests’ achievements are a ‘source of inspiration and gratitude’ according to Wimbledon – and now Mr Hutchinson is among them. 

The BLM supporter told Channel 4 News in the aftermath of the 2020 demonstration: ‘If the other three police officers that were standing around when George Floyd was murdered had thought about intervening, and stopping their colleague from doing what he was doing, like what we did, George Floyd would be alive today still.

‘I just want equality for all of us. At the moment, the scales are unfairly balanced and I want things to be fair for my children and my grandchildren.’

Mr Hutchinson told reporter Keme Nzerem he knew nothing about the man he saved, who he described as ‘partially unconscious’. 

‘On arrival I note, at this point, the guy was already on the floor,’ he said.

‘It was pretty hectic, it was almost like a stampede there was lots of people, people trying to protect him but unsuccessfully.

‘And then the guys went in there, they put a little cordon around him to stop him receiving any more physical harm.

‘He was under physical harm, his life was under threat. And as they did that, I thought, ‘well if he stays here he’s not going to make it’.

‘So I went under, scooped him up, put him on my shoulders and started marching towards the police with him, whilst all the guys were surrounding me, and protecting me and the guy I had on my shoulder.

‘I could actually feel strikes and hits as I was carrying him, so these guys were probably taking some of that themselves on their person.

It was [scary], you don’t think about that though at the time. You just do what you’ve got to do.’

Asked his reaction to being called a hero, he added: ‘I was just the guy caught on camera with him on my shoulder, but all these guys were all party to it. Without them protecting me, I would have probably got stampeded as well underneath it. So it was a team effort.’

Mr Hutchinson added: ‘I had no plans to go up there. I was at home looking after my grandchildren – and my friend said we’ve gotta go and protect the women and the children and stop these young guys from getting in any trouble.’

The BLM supporter said you ‘just do what you’ve got to do’ when he recalled the moment he saved the rival protester’s life in 2020

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