The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are set to embrace the freezing conditions of Vancouver as they leave Santa Barbara in California via private chartered jet and make the three-hour journey to Canada.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will check into a city centre hotel ahead of the Invictus Games, the international sporting event for military veterans and their families, which Harry co-founded in 2014.
It will be the fifth time they have attended the Invictus Games as a couple having previously attended in Sydney, Australia, The Hague in Holland, and Dusseldorf in Germany in 2023 – and they are set to receive an enthusiastic welcome from fans.
The Games, inspired by Prince Harry, will see 500 competitors from 23 countries participate in various sporting events across Vancouver, Whistler.
With finishing touches being put to venues across the city, workers have been braving sub-zero temperatures around sites such as the city’s Convention Centre where sporting events will be held.
Black and yellow banners with the games slogan ‘I Am’ are being erected around the waterfront centre which will host all the indoor sports, including wheelchair basketball and volleyball.
Pavements around the venue in the coastal Canadian city and the BC Place stadium are also being cleared.
Temperatures will barely get above freezing, with snow flurries expected all week.
The opening ceremony will be held on February 8, with performances from singer Katy Perry and also Coldplay’s lead singer, Chris Martin in front of a crowd of 40,000 spectators.
Prince Harry is set to make a speech welcoming the athletes and their families to the games which will be split between Vancouver and the Whistler ski resort between February 8-16th.
The Sussexes have a special connection with Canada, having previously resided on Vancouver Island in 2020 following their departure from royal duties in what became known as ‘Megxit’.
Though the couple later relocated to Montecito, California, Prince Harry has maintained ties with Vancouver, making two separate visits to promote the 2025 Games.
Both Harry and Meghan visited Whistler for the ‘One Year to Go’ event in February 2024, where Harry tried out the new winter sports ahead of tomorrow’s Games.