Prince Harry dwarfed by New York Knicks' Carmelo Anthony at St James's Palace

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Prince Harry was dwarfed by 6ft 8" basketball star Carmelo Anthony
30-year-old New York Knicks player joined Harry for a charity reception
Presented the prince with a single size 15 shoe - much to his amusement
Congolese basketball player Dikembe Mutomo also at the event
Reception held on behalf of Core Coach, an apprenticeship scheme

By Ruth Styles And Rebecca English For Mailonline

Published: 10:32 EST, 14 January 2015 | Updated: 11:23 EST, 14 January 2015

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He might be a not-so-small 6ft 2" but Prince Harry was left looking positively diminutive when he joined forces with 6ft 8" basketball star Carmelo Anthony for a reception at St. James's Palace.

Posing for photos with the New York Knicks player, the fourth-in-line to the throne was forced to crane his neck while attempting to make eye contact.

Despite the disparity in height, Harry, who was making his first official appearance of 2015, appeared to be enjoying the star's company with the pair seen beaming as they traded quips.

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Dwarfed: Prince Harry with New York Knicks basketball star, Carmelo Anthony, 30

Unusual: Anthony presented the 30-year-old prince with a basketball shirt and a single orange shoe

The prince, who was given a personalised training shirt by the athlete, then burst into fits of laughter when Anthony also presented him with a single orange shoe.

Still chuckling, he promptly told a smiling Anthony that he would have to come to his upcoming game in London to collect the other one. 'And I love the shirt,' he added.

The duo were joined for the reception by Congolese basketball star Dikembe Mutombo, 48, who, at 7ft 1", towered over Anthony as well, and British basketball player John Amaechi.

The reception at St James's Palace was held in aid of the Core Coach programme, an apprentice scheme run for jobless young people by the Royal Foundation.

Speaking to the 33 newly qualified sports coaches who were trained via the programme, Harry said: 'This is not where it ends but where it starts.

Where's the other one? Harry told the Knicks star he would have to come to a game to get the other one

Getting along: The pair seemed to hit it off and spent much of the reception trading quips

Royal seal of approval: Harry said he 'loved' the personalised basketball shirt emblazoned with 'Wales'

Pint-sized prince: 7ft 2" NBA ambassador Dikembe Mutombo made Prince Harry look positively small

'When my brother, Catherine and I launched the Coach Core programme back in 2012, we had a vision of young people being inspired to become amazing sports coaches for their communities and beyond: Young people, who would in turn, inspire others to change their lives through sport.

'Like many others, we had been profoundly moved by the excitement of the London Olympics - a celebration of sporting achievement. Of course, this level of excellence is only possible through an immense amount of hard work by the athletes, their coaches, mentors and all those who support them on their journey to greatness.'

He said the graduates had worked 'fantastically hard', adding: 'Completing the Coach Core programme has, I know, not been easy – but then trying to be the best you can be, isn’t easy.

‘Today's graduation marks a success for all those involved - graduates, coaches, mentors, friends, family and all those who have supported the programme so generously.

Prince Harry meets Carmelo Anthony at St James's Palace

Important work: The royal joined forces with the basketball stars on behalf of the Coach Core scheme

Speech: Harry also made a speech at the reception and presented new graduates with completion certificate

Enjoying themselves: The scheme aims to train people with few prospects - some of whom were at the Palace

Getting along: Harry and Carmelo Anthony appeared to be getting along famously

So, to the graduates - I hope that wherever the future takes you, that you will continue to be role models and to inspire others through sport.’

Among the hopefuls he spoke to was James Forrester, 19, from Glasgow, who is currently working as a lifeguard after taking the year-long Coach Core course and hopes to become a sports development officer.

‘What was so great about the course was that it was very practical, we worked with children and learn about every kind of sport imaginable from football to tennis and even off-ice-skating, which is ice-skating in a sports hall,’ he said.

Who me? The pair traded quips as photographers attempted to take a group photo

Inspiration: Harry said he hoped the new coaches would prove to be role models and inspire their students

Delighted: Harry and Carmelo Anthony present one of the graduates with his certificate

‘I’m not doing exactly what I want at the moment but it had helped me get settled financially and I have so many ambitions for the future. It has transformed my life.’

Coach Core apprentices learn technical sports skills alongside coaching and mentoring. The course is specifically designed to help students to find employment afterwards.

The programme has helped many young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, some of whom had dropped out of school, were unemployed or struggling to gain qualifications.

It currently has three programmes running, in London, Glasgow and New York.