Claim this moment, Prince Harry tells Invictus Games competitors at opening ceremony spectacle
Prince Harry officially opened the 2023 Invictus Games by encouraging competitors to own their place in the event, assuring the 500 military sportsmen and women the games were "not a handout".
To chants of 'Harry, Harry, Harry,' the former Household Cavalry officer spoke in German to welcome competitors and the crowd of more than 20,000 people that filled the Merkur Spiel-Arena.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz sent a video message in which he singled out the Ukrainian Team and directly addressed the ongoing war against Russia on Europe's Eastern flank.
Ahead of the opening ceremony, the Duke of Sussex took time out of his schedule to meet with Team UK, during which he posed for pictures with the competitors.
The Duke of Sussex wished them well whilst hearing more about their final preparations before competing at this year's games.
Prince Harry founded the Invictus Games to aid the rehabilitation of injured and sick military personnel and veterans across the globe, by giving them the challenge of competing in sporting events similar to the Paralympics.
Team UK is made up of 59 competitors from across the veteran and military personnel community.
This year's Games will see 550 competitors from across 21 countries come together to compete across 10 sports.
For the first time, Colombia, Nigeria and Israel are fielding teams, and table tennis has been added to the sports line-up, taking the total number of events to ten.
Alongside table tennis, competitors will fight it out across events including archery, athletics, cycling, indoor rowing, powerlifting, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby.
Germany is only the sixth nation to host the Invictus Games, following the likes of the UK, Australia and the Netherlands.
The 2023 Invictus Games run until Saturday 16 September.
Related topics
Join Our Newsletter
