The 2nd edition of the Invictus Games kicked off in Orlando, Florida yesterday with a moving Opening Ceremony attended by notable names within the international sporting community.
A paralympic-style, multi-sport event, the Invictus Games were created by England’s Prince Harry as a way for sick, wounded or injured military personnel and veterans to compete on an international sporting stage. The first edition of the Games took place in 2014 at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, while the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando is the site of the 2016 version.
The Invictus Games span May 8th through May 12th and encompass the sports of archery, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, wheelchair tennis, swimming, track and field, sitting volleyball, cycling, powerlifting, indoor rowing and driving challenge. Over 500 athletes across 13 nations are expected to compete.
Helping initiate the competition is 5-time Olympic gold medalist, Australian swimming legend Ian Thorpe. As one of the Invictus Games ambassadors, Thorpe arrived in Orlando yesterday, May 8th, surprising members of the Australian swimming team before the start of the 5-day competition.
“It’s a pleasure to be here for the Invictus Games and to support this event and the attention the Games is receiving from nations all around the world,” 33-year old Thorpe told the media.
“We hear all of these things and all of the horrors of the injuries and all of the trauma that people may come back [with] from war zones and being in that kind of environment,” Thorpe stated to the Orlando Sentinel. “To show that these people are still prepared to be able to deliver and enjoy themselves, it is a transition that gives a positive side to all of this.”
Curtis McGrath, an Australian swimmer who lost both his legs as a result of an improvised explosive device attack in Afghanistan, conveyed that “Ian’s presence here as part of the Invictus Games will also help to highlight our recovery and how far we have come.”
“Ian is an Olympic champion and to have him and the other ambassadors here on the eve of competition is a great inspiration,” said McGrath.
Olympic medal-winning gymnast Shawn Johnson and two-time Super Bowl champion Max Starks are also on-hand as Games ambassadors.