Prince Harry, Meghan in Whistler for Invictus Games welcome ceremony

By Canadian Press on February 10, 2025.

WHISTLER, B.C. — Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, are in Whistler, B.C., for the town’s Invictus Games welcome ceremony.

Harry says he wants everyone competing at the games for wounded, injured and sick military veterans and other service personnel to enjoy the experience while taking what he jokingly calls “measured risk.”

He says it’s a historic moment for the games as it features winter adaptive sports for the first time, including alpine and nordic cross-country skiing, snowboarding, biathlon and skeleton.

Harry and Meghan were introduced to the stage in Whistler Village by Canadian singer Michael Buble, who says those competing in the games are “real superheroes.”

The outdoor ceremony was being held amid frigid conditions in Whistler, where an Arctic outflow warning is in effect and Environment Canada is warning of the risk of frostbite and hypothermia as windchills drop near minus 20.

The games officially opened in co-host Vancouver on Saturday at BC Place, where the prince delivered an emotional speech, at a ceremony featuring musical guests Katy Perry, Chris Martin and Nelly Furtado.

Many of the events in Whistler are taking place at the same venues that hosted the 2010 Olympic Games, including the Whistler Sliding Centre — home of the fastest bobsled track in the world — where the skeleton final takes place this afternoon.

Prince Harry tested out the icy track last year and hit a top speed of 99 kilometres per hour.

The Games run until Feb. 16, and will conclude with a closing ceremony at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena.