Prince Harry drops the puck ahead of Vancouver Canucks game
Posted November 20, 2023 7:32 pm.
Last Updated November 21, 2023 7:27 am.
Prince Harry dropped the puck for a ceremonial faceoff ahead of the Vancouver Canucks matchup with the San Jose Sharks on Monday.
Harry follows in the footsteps of his grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, after the Queen dropped the puck ahead of a Canucks game against the Sharks in October 2002.
The Duke of Sussex and his wife, Meghan Markle, alongside senior members of the Invictus Games Foundation, are visiting B.C. in preparation for the 2025 Invictus Games, which are set to take place in Vancouver and Whistler.
The event will mark the first-ever winter edition of the Invictus Games, taking place from Feb. 8 to Feb. 16, 2025.
Vancouver and Whistler, with the support of the Líl̓wat (Lilwat), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, were awarded the Invictus Games last year.
The games are an international sporting event for military members, both serving and veterans, who have been wounded, injured, or sick.
“The Invictus Games Vancouver-Whistler 2025 will offer a global platform to expand the range and profile of winter adaptive sports. With deep respect, I’m also pleased to share that the Games in Canada will be held in partnership with the First Nations, in the spirit of truth and reconciliation with [Indigenous] communities,” the Duke of Sussex said in a statement while announcing the location in 2022.
An estimated 500 competitors from 20 nations will compete in adaptive sports, including the new winter sports: alpine skiing, nordic skiing, skeleton, and wheelchair curling.
B.C. Premier David Eby, Tourism, Arts, Culture, and Sports Minister Lana Popham, and local Indigenous leaders attended the Canucks game alongside Harry and Meghan Monday.
