Kate Middleton, Ben Ainslie
Kate Middleton poses with Ben Ainslie at a bid to launch the British Team for the America's Cup at the National Maritime Museum in London, June 10, 2014. Reuters

Rumors about Kate Middleton flirting with British sailor Ben Ainslie have resurfaced. Gossip Cop debunked a Star magazine report that said Middleton had a “flirt fest” with Ainslie in front of her husband Prince William at the America’s Cup on July 24 in Portsmouth, England.

A source told Star, as cited by Gossip Cop, that William’s presence at the event “didn’t stop Kate from flirting merrily with the sexy skipper.”

“Kate is like a giddy schoolgirl around Ben… She totally adores him,” the source told the magazine, adding that the Duchess of Cambridge “toyed with her hair and batted her eyelashes, while her husband stood by, looking a bit like a third wheel.”

“Kate was all aglow and couldn’t wipe the smile off her face,” the insider told the magazine.

Star also reported that Middleton’s “crush [on Ainslie] has been building for a while now.” The report added that the “sparks” between Middleton and Ainslie first flew at the 2012 summer Olympics in London, where Ainslie won a gold medal and again in May this year when the 34-year-old mother of two went for training ride on Ainslie’s new catamaran.

“[Ainslie] really floats her boat,” the source reportedly said.

However, Gossip Cop reported, citing a source at the America’s Cup, that the magazine’s claims about Middleton flirting with Ainslie were “rubbish.”

The rumor debunking website previously dismissed a similar report that claimed Middleton and Ainslie were flirting during a training session in Portsmouth in May.