Add Category
Updated
The rain that drenched Sydney may have delayed the start, but it did not dampen the spirit on display at a glittering Invictus Games opening ceremony.
Organisers postponed the ceremony from 7:30pm until 8:30pm, and by the time the bagpipes fired up for the start, the weather had cleared.
Thousands gathered to watch 500 competitors from 18 countries — including 72 Australian participants — march through the forecourt, with huge cheers echoing over the famous steps.
The athletes will compete in 12 sports across the week, with the golf and driving challenge — on Sydney's Cockatoo Island today — already started.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived at the venue for a reception ahead of the ceremony, with Prince Harry given a standing ovation as he came on stage to officially open the event.
The Prince, who also praised Australia for the welcome he and his wife had received during their stay, said Invictus was about "strength honour and optimism".
"The Invictus generation is also about showing that being tough means being honest about how you feel inside and out," he said.
"Remember, you are competing for one generation — the Invictus Generation ... and you are going to put on one hell of a show."
The Prince, who described the Opera House setting as "the most beautiful backdrop" also implored the Australian public — and the people of Sydney — to get out and support the competitors.
"Australia, lets show the world how it's done."
The soldiers were always going to be the true stars but a video featuring "volunteers" James Corden, Hamish Blake and Magda Szubanski — in character as "Sharon" from Kath and Kim — stole the show.
Other entertainment included traditional Aboriginal dancers and performances from Kate Ceberano, Lee Kernaghan and Birds of Tokyo, who dedicated their hit Unbreakable to the hundreds of competitors.
In the crowd there was a mix of family members and general supporters.
Kylie Stefanick, a mother-of-two performing onstage with the Ozy Youth choir — a choir featuring defence children — said the Invictus event was "wonderful".
"We've been touched by some of the stories we've heard," she said.
"And we wish them all the best, everyone does."
In her welcoming address to guests before Prince Harry and Meghan arrived, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian recounted how she was moved when she heard Prince Harry outline in June last year how he was inspired to create the Invictus Games for wounded services personnel.
She said Sydney would "embrace" the Invictus spirit for the duration of the Games, which close next Saturday night at Quodos Bank Arena.
"It's a responsibility that we embrace with pride," she said.
Earlier in the day, the ABC joined the Australian team on the boat that took them from Olympic Park to the Opera House and the mood was jovial, albeit a little nervous.
The "Aussie Aussie Aussie" chant went up on the boat, as team members applied green and gold glitter and zinc.
Team co-captain Nicole Bradley, who is competing in the powerlifting on Tuesday, said the games had changed her life.
"It's beyond my wildest dreams to do this," she said.
Her co-captain Matthew Brumby, who is competing in three sports, described it as a "proud moment".
"The feeling in the team is great, maybe a little nervous, but it's great," he said.
Topics: defence-and-national-security, sport, disabilities, defence-forces, sydney-2000
First posted