Prince Harry opens Invictus Games for disabled

Britain’s Prince Harry yesterday opened the Olympic-style Invictus Games for disabled and wounded soldiers at a moving ceremony on the forecourt of Sydney’s Opera House, after an intense thunderstorm forced an hour-long delay.

The Duke of Sussex, who climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Friday to help raise the Games flag, welcomed more than 500 competitors from 18 nations to an event that he founded. “Over the last four years the Invictus Games have become about so much more than the thousands of competitors who have taken part,” he said on a stage shaped like a boomerang, following a belated traditional Aboriginal welcome ceremony that was held up by torrential rain and lightning.

“Invictus has become about the example of service and dedication our competitors have provided to the world. Our Invictus family has turned these Games into a symbol of strength, honour, and optimism for a new generation.” The prince said the concept was particularly relevant in 2018, the centenary of the end of World War I.