What is Prince Harry’s Invictus Games? Everything you need to know about the Duke of Sussex’s sporting event that is now the subject of a Netflix series
- The next Invictus Games will take place in Düsseldorf in September 2023
- Everything you need to know about the sporting event founded by Prince Harry
Prince Harry’s brand new Netflix documentary series ‘Heart of Invictus’ has landed on August 30, 2023.
The five-episode docuseries about the Invictus Games is part of an £80million deal the Sussexes have with the streaming platform.
In the documentary, the Duke seemed to take another swipe at the Royal Family, claiming that when he came back from war-torn Afghanistan he had no support network.
The first-ever Invictus games took place from September 10 -14, 2014 in London.
The Duke of Sussex’s Invictus series launches in the run-up to the sporting event’s next instalment in Düsseldorf on September 9. 2023.
But what is Prince Harry’s Invictus Games? What is the purpose of the event and what was it inspired by?
The Invictus Games, a sporting event spearheaded by the Duke of Sussex is the subject of his new Netflix docuseries ‘Heart of Invictus’. Pictured: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Invictus Games, Toronto, Canada on September 25. 2017
Prince Harry was inspired to start the international sporting event for wounded service people by the USA’s Warrior Games. Pictured: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are pictured smiling for a group photo at the Invictus Games in Holland on April 16, 2022
What is the Invictus Games?
The story of the Invictus Games began a decade ago all the way across the pond in the USA, while Prince Harry was on a visit to the Warrior Games.
The Warrior Games is an adaptive-sports competition organised by the USA’s Department of Defence.
The US games will be celebrating their 14th anniversary this upcoming year. Its aim is to honour the resilience of injured, unwell or wounded veterans and active duty personnel in the US military.
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Upon observing The Warrior Games, the Duke of Sussex witnessed first-hand how sport could aid wounded military personnel in their journey to recovery, both physically and mentally.
Inspired by the US Department of Defence, Prince Harry decided he wanted to hold an international sporting occasion for sick, injured and wounded military men and women.
After only eight months of organisation, the world’s first Invictus Games was held in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London.
The Invictus Games take place over the course of a week and host around 500 contestants.
The sporting competition hosts an array of sports including, swimming, wheelchair rugby, indoor rowing, sitting volleyball and wheelchair basketball.
There are also flexibility to accommodate for extra sports, including esports.
Led by the Duke of Sussex with the help of the Ministry of Defence as well as the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the first ever games in London were a massive success.
Now the sixth version of the Invictus Games are set to kick off in Düsseldorf, Germany from September 9 until September 16, 2023.
21 countries from across the world will be competing in the event, including Nigeria, Columbia and Israel.
Rita Ora will also be gracing the competition with her vocal chords for the closing ceremony.
The games take place over the course of a week. The Duke of Sussex started the sporting event after witnessing the power of sport in aiding injured military personnel recover both mentally and physically. Pictured: Prince Harry is pictured reaching out to shake hands with a British athlete at the Invictus Games on April 16, 2022
Prince Harry, 38 encouraged veterans gearing up for last year’s Invictus Games to ‘just f**king cry’ if they get emotional as he gave Team UK athletes an inspirational speech in the run up to last years Invictus Games
Why is it called Invictus Games?
The reasoning behind the name ‘Invictus Games’ comes from William Ernest Henley’s poem ‘Invictus’.
In the Latin language, the meaning of the word is ‘undefeated’ or ‘unconquerable’.
The poem was written by Henley in 1875 and released as part of a series poems titled ‘Book of Verses’, and lies within the section called ‘Life and Death (Echoes).
READ MORE: Prince Harry claims the media ‘did not cover’ British soldiers being wounded in Afghanistan as he discusses Press coverage of his deployment in new Netflix documentary
The piece of literature conveys the idea of courage in the face of death, and retaining one’s dignity even though life puts a number of injustices before us.
The Duke of Sussex wrote: ‘These Games have shone a spotlight on the ‘unconquerable’ character of servicemen and women, their families and the ‘Invictus’ spirit.
‘These Games have been about seeing guys sprinting for the finish line and then turning round to clap the last man in.’
He added: ‘These Games have shown the very best of the human spirit.”
In his new Netflix docuseries the Duke of Sussex revealed his own struggles when returning from battle in Afghanistan in 2008.
He stated: The biggest struggle for me was no one around me really could help.
‘I didn’t have that support structure, that network or that expert advice to identify what was actually going on with me.’
Prince Harry speaks about his trauma following his tour in Afghanistan, in the new ‘Heart of Invictus’ documentary revealing he had no ‘support structure’
The Duke of Sussex previously served in the Army for ten years. He reached the rank of Captain and also went on two tours of Afghanistan. Pictured: Prince Harry and his father, then Prince Charles, stand in front of an Apache Helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, on March 21, 2011
What is Harry’s role in the Invictus Games?
The Duke of Sussex is the patron and founder of the Invictus Games Foundation.
Although he lost his titles and privileges after he and Meghan Markle departed from the Royal Family, he continued to maintain a working relationship with the foundation as a patron.
This means he is part of the governing board of the Invictus Games Foundation.
What the Invictus Games offers is beyond only the sporting event., they offer other sporting opportunities via the app We Are Invictus as well as grant programmes to help support injured and wounded service people across the globe in their goals.
Where is the sporting event held this year?
The sixth version of the sporting competition founded by the Duke of Sussex will be held in the western German city of Düsseldorf.
The Invictus Games will take place at the Merkur Spiel-Arena, for a week from September 9.
The city as well as the German Armed Forces will host an estimated 500 sporting contestants from 21 countries from around the world.
The friends and family of those competing in the ten different sporting disciplines will also land in the Germany city.
In previous years the Invictus Games have been hosted in various corners of the globe. in 2014 the event kicked off in London, before heading to Orlando, USA in 2016.
In 2017 the sporting event graced Toronto Canada, before landing in Sydney and the Netherlands in 2018 and 2022 respectively.
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