BREAKING Prince Harry & Meghan Markle launch Invictus Games with Coldplay's Chris Martin and Katy Perry

Prince Harry's Invictus Games are present underway successful Vancouver-Whistler, Canada, with a star-studded opening ceremonial featuring the likes of Katy Perry, Nelly Furtado and Coldplay's Chris Martin.

Held successful the city's 40,000-capacity BC Place Stadium, the glittering ceremonial began astatine 9pm UK time.

After Team United Kingdom entered the stadium, the camera past chopped to Harry and Meghan watching from the stands, some received immense cheers arsenic they smiled, with Harry seen waving to the crowd.

Indigenous leaders from the accepted territories of the Four Host First Nations of Lílwat, Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil Waututh, where the Games are being held, raised woody paddles successful a symbolic invited motion to the competitors.

More than 500 competitors, from 23 countries, volition instrumentality portion successful the Games. They entered the stadium successful an Olympic-style parade portion escorted by Canadian Armed Forces Cadets carrying placards displaying their country's names.

This twelvemonth marks the archetypal clip the Invictus Games will see wintertime sports specified arsenic alpine skiing, snowboarding, and Nordic skiing. Kicking disconnected contiguous (February 8), the Games, which are known to beryllium Prince Harry's passionateness project, volition proceed until February 16.

Prince Harry archetypal founded the Invictus Games successful 2014 with the purpose of championing wounded, injured, oregon sick work unit and veterans. The prince is known to beryllium precise hands-on with a task regarded by galore to beryllium his legacy, which, fixed his ain years arsenic a soldier, holds a profoundly idiosyncratic significance.

Organisers person said that this year's event, which comes aft erstwhile Games' were held successful London, Orlando, Toronto, Sydney, The Hague and Dusseldorf, volition beryllium the biggest yet. It volition instrumentality spot astatine 8 abstracted venues successful Vancouver and the skis edifice of Whistler, located connected the accepted territories of the Four Host First Nations of Lílwat, Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil Waututh.

Chief Executive Officer Scott Moore said: "We volition present the champion ever Invictus Games implicit the adjacent 9 days. These Games volition beryllium life-changing.". Mr Moore added: "I was fortunate capable to bash eleven Olympic Games successful my career. People inquire maine what is the quality betwixt the Olympic Games and the Invictus Games. The Olympic Games changes lives... the Invictus Games saves lives."

Prince Harry and Meghan were seen arriving successful Vancouver yesterday evening aft landing successful the metropolis via backstage pitchy from Santa Barbara, adjacent to their location successful Montecito. Harry's ongoing committedness to the task was highlighted yesterday (Friday 7) astatine an evening invited reception for competitors, wherever Meghan warmly described participants arsenic "family".

Addressing attendees, Meghan said: "You volition spot him passim this week, you volition spot him astatine the Games, you volition spot him astir apt curling with you, cheering you on. He wants to beryllium determination with you, helium is successful it with you.

"What you won't person seen is each of the moments successful the lead-up to these Games. All of the moments with, arsenic you know, with families, the large unreserved successful the morning, and getting acceptable for schoolhouse and packing the luncheon boxes and making meal and my husband's successful each of that with us.

"And past he'll beryllium connected his phone, and Archie volition say, 'Papa, wherefore are you connected your phone?'. He's like, 'cos it's Invictus... I'm getting acceptable for Invictus'. It means truthful overmuch to him."

Meghan continued: "You are his family, conscionable arsenic we are his family, and I anticipation you recognise however overmuch of his bosom helium has poured into each azygous bushed that has gotten each of you to this week that is going to beryllium spectacular. I request you to cognize that, I request you to cognize however overmuch it means to him and however overmuch each of you means to you."

This comes astatine a tricky clip for the Sussexes, who person been subjected to sizeable scrutiny successful caller weeks.

A caller Vanity Fair piece, published January 17, formed a captious oculus implicit the couple's 5 years extracurricular of the palace fold, with the mates having famously stepped backmost from their duties arsenic elder moving members of the Royal family backmost successful 2025.

The usually supportive work spoke with assorted insiders astir what it was similar to enactment for the powerfulness couple, and determination were immoderate little than rosy accounts of Meghan's allegedly "painful" absorption benignant towards unit members.

A root who worked connected Sussex media projects told the outlet: “[It was] really, really, truly awful. Very painful. Because she’s perpetually playing checkers—I’m not adjacent going to accidental chess—but she’s conscionable precise alert of wherever everybody is connected her board. And erstwhile you are not in, you are to beryllium thrown to the wolves astatine immoderate fixed moment.”

The article, titled 'American Hustle,' besides addressed speculation implicit the alleged authorities of Harry and Meghan's marriage, which the mates person powerfully denied. It even speculated connected rumours that Meghan had been approached to constitute a 'post-divorce' book. However, it besides stated that this was not connected the cards for the Duke and Duchess, with different root revealing their "love is real", portion asserting they are "still blistery for each other."

Now, a caller publication by royal writer Tom Quinn has seen the Sussexes travel nether scrutiny erstwhile again, with its numberous revelations including the assertion that Meghan allegedly didn't attraction for hers and Harry's archetypal "small" location together, Nottingham Cottage.

In Yes Ma'am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants - which has been excerpted successful The Times - Quinn penned: "'Meghan felt it was truthful tiny that it indispensable beryllium a reflection of however the royal family were belittling her husband. She conscionable didn't recognize that existent royals don't attraction overmuch astir houses and worldly possessions because, having ever had them, they instrumentality them for granted, said 1 subordinate of unit who helped retired regularly astatine Nottingham Cottage."

He continued: "A alternatively beauteous location successful the grounds of a celebrated palace hardly seemed to Harry the equivalent to being forced to unrecorded successful a shed astatine the extremity of the garden. But for Meghan, things were much complex. She saw Kate and William surviving conscionable a fewer yards distant successful Kensington Palace itself with teams of live-in servants."

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