Prince Harry's doing something pretty amazing. The handsome British royal has brought his Invictus Games to Orlando, welcoming more than 500 former military personnel from 15 different countries to compete in a Paralympic-style sporting event.
First launched in 2014, Invictus (which means "unconquered" in Latin) is a chance for injured servicemen and -women to find hope, challenge and team spirit after their injuries cut short their military careers and, as Harry explains, "to demonstrate the power of sports to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and to demonstrate life beyond disability."
The first games took place in London in 2014 at the site of the London Olympics, and the event was such a success that it's continued to grow year on year, in both size and status.
This year's Orlando competition will last for five days, starting Sunday, May 8, at Forida's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex within the Disney World resort.
The sportsmen and -women will compete in events such as power lifting, road cycling, sitting voleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball, archery, rugby and tennis.
The prince will join Michelle Obama and Hollywood star Morgan Freeman at the opening ceremony for the Games on Sunday evening, and will give a three-minute speech talking about his own experiences in war.
"People in America and people across the world, if you haven't seen the Games, may think, 'Oh, this is a bunch of wounded soldiers on a sporting field taking each other on,'" Harry said recently. "It's completely the opposite — it's an emotional roller coaster."
ESPN’s five-day coverage of the Invictus Games Orlando 2016 kicks off on ESPN2 on Sunday, May 8, at 8 p.m. ET and continues until Thursday, May 12.
