Daughter of Norway’s ailing crown princess returns from Australia

OSLO – The daughter of Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit has cut short her studies in Australia and returned to Oslo on June 3 to be at the bedside of her seriously ill mother.

Princess Mette-Marit, 52, was diagnosed in 2018 with a rare form of pulmonary fibrosis, which causes breathing difficulties and has forced her to scale back her official duties.

Her daughter, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, has been studying social sciences at the University of Sydney since 2025.

Princess Mette-Marit’s husband, Crown Prince Haakon, has also cut short a trip to Japan to return home.

“We are a family for whom everyone matters, so we draw strength from coming together and being with one another,” he told reporters in Tokyo.

“As I said last time, the crown princess’s health condition is serious.”

The royal palace announced in December 2025 that Princess Mette-Marit might soon be forced to undergo a high-risk transplant.

During her recent public appearances, the princess was using respiratory support equipment – nasal cannulas connected to an oxygen device.

The princess has had a difficult few months other than her health problems.

In January, documents were published in the United States revealing her sustained and at times intimate correspondence with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein between 2011 and 2014.

She has also had to deal with the legal troubles of her son from her first marriage, Marius Borg Hoiby, who has been on trial for rape and violence. The verdict in his case is expected on June 15. AFP