Prince Harry has opened up in an emotional new video about the “healing power of sport” ahead of next year’s Invictus Games.
The Duke of Sussex posted the message on the official account for the 2025 Games in Vancouver, Canada, this afternoon on X, formerly Twitter.
He told spectators: “Sport has the ability to heal, to change lives and to save lives.”
Harry is the patron of the Invictus Games, which he established in 2014 as an international multi-sport event tailored for military men and women, wounded, injured and sick.
Both serving troops and veterans are encouraged to compete as part of their recovery journeys.
Prince Harry has spoken in a new video about the “healing power of sport” ahead of next year’s Invictus Games in Vancouver, Canada.
The video promoting next year’s Games includes a compilation featuring past competitors.
Prince Harry and his then girlfriend and now wife Meghan are pictured here watching wheelchair tennis at the Invictus Games in 2017, also in Canada but in Toronto.
Harry added in his direct address in the 117-second video: ‘For many of these competitors, getting to the start line has been one of the most difficult moments of their lives.
“But at the Games, their lives change. To see those magical moments happen, and sport as a facilitator of that, is something very, very special for all of us.”
Earlier this summer, the Prince greeted wounded, injured and sick UK service personnel and veterans who will take part in the 64-strong team, made up of 60 competitors and four reserves.
They have been named as part of Team UK for what are being called the Vancouver Whistler Invictus Games, scheduled to take place next February.
Prince Harry said in July: ‘Congratulations to those selected for Team UK for our first ever Invictus Winter Games in Vancouver Whistler next February.
‘Team UK will join over 500 competitors from 20 nations at this ground-breaking event which broadens the range and profile of winter adaptive sports.
‘These games present an incredible opportunity for our brave service personnel and veterans to showcase their skills in new challenges such as alpine skiing, snowboarding and skeleton, while providing a truly memorable experience for their families.
“We are excited to see their passion, determination and resilience on full display as they face this new chapter.”
The Duke of Sussex is the patron of the Invictus Games, which he established in 2014.
The touching new video posted today on the official Invictus Games 2025 X account featured participants from previous tournaments and their families.
The Duke of Sussex slides down the track on a skeleton sled during an Invictus Games training camp. Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, slides down the track on a skeleton sled during an Invictus Games training camp in February.
That same month, Harry was honored with the Pat Tillman Service Award for his work on the Invictus Games at the glitzy ESPY Awards in Los Angeles.
Tillman, an American football star who gave up a £3m contract to join the US Army after 9/11, saw his life tragically cut short at the age of 27 when he was killed in friendly fire while serving in Afghanistan 20 years ago.
The prince, watched by his wife Meghan Markle, used his acceptance speech to speak of the “eternal bond” between mother and son, a nod to Mary Tillman and Princess Diana.
Harry had faced calls for the award to be rejected because it has typically gone to unnamed veterans, and more than 76,000 people have signed a petition demanding the decision be reversed.
Tillman’s mother Mary, who said she was not consulted about giving Prince Harry the award named after her son, told the Mail before the event: “I am shocked that they selected such a controversial and divisive individual to receive the award.
‘There are recipients who are much more suitable. There are people working in the veteran community who are doing tremendous things to help them.
“These people don’t have the money, the resources, the connections or the privileges that Prince Harry has. I think these kinds of people should be recognised.”
Next year’s Invictus Games in Vancouver will be the first Invictus Games to include winter sports.
The Duke of Sussex and Meghan Markle are pictured here as spectators during the 2023 Invictus Games at the Merkur Spiel-Arena in the German city of Dusseldorf.
Prince Harry, pictured with his wife Meghan, has said he is thrilled to see the “passion, determination and resilience” of Team UK for the first ever winter sports Invictus Games.
Prince Harry at the Invictus Games One Year To Go event, taking place in February in Whistler, Canada
Meghan Markle beamed with pride as Prince Harry received a prestigious military honour at the ESPY Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles in July this year.
Team UK captain Stephen ‘Hoops’ Hooper returns for his second Invictus Games after competing in weightlifting and sitting volleyball in Dusseldorf in 2023.
Hooper, who served in the RAF and was diagnosed with PTSD before being discharged in 2021, said: ‘Being selected for Team UK again was daunting in itself, but being captain is also a privilege.
‘Last time I learned a lot from the whole experience with Team UK. I went from standing in the corner of a room and not talking to anyone to finding my voice again.
“And that’s what I want to do for others this time around: make sure every member of Team UK comes together and takes those steps forward in their recovery.”
