Invictus in Orlando

Archery at the Invictus Games,  September 12, 2014  London
Picture credit: Petty Officer 2nd Class Mark Logico,  US Navy
 

There was a joyful announcement on our local News station here this morning that needs to be shared with all of you.
This year’s Invictus Games will be here in Orlando from May 8-12,  at the ESPN Disney Worldwide Complex.
This will hopefully allow those of you who may be farther away, a chance to make plans to attend.
The first one was organized/begun by Prince Harry in London in 2014,  with over 300 competitors from 13 Countries.
Now we here in Central Florida have the extreme pleasure and take great pride in hosting the second one in Orlando in May.
All the details are below.
My interest in these games is three fold:  my son is a paraplegic and he participated in many different kinds of sports in a wheel chair,  which was at once, exciting and terrifying as his mother, but I adjusted quickly, after seeing how much it meant to him.
Watching my son crash onto the floor head first in a basketball game, was really hard for me, thank God,  he has a hard head.  Must be his Genes!
Basketball would be only one of many sports he played, many of the same ones listed for these games, all were when he was much younger and thankfully, he survived!
My second reason is due to my lifelong, family related, support of Military Veterans, especially those who have been wounded while serving.
And by the way, not all wounds are visible.
As a treatment Nurse in a California Rehab Center, I had 4 years to learn and understand this fact quite well.
For any one not familiar with this exciting event, it is a multi-sport competition and celebration for wounded veterans from around the world.
This year more than 15 Countries and over 500 athletes have been invited and will be represented here in Orlando.
This year’s various sports will include: track and field, wheel chair basketball, archery, wheel chair tennis, indoor rowing, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair rugby and a Triathlon.
If you have the time and/or the funds, I truly hope that you can come here to Orlando in May, to witness, to experience, this glorious celebration and event.
What better way to say thank you to these men and women, not only for their service, but also for their great sacrifices to their Countries.
God Bless them all.
They are some of the bravest people you and I will ever know and perhaps meet.
My third reason, is the movie Invictus, which is one of my all time favorite’s, with Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon and a story about Nelson Mandela, what is not to love!
Did I mention that Prince Harry will be here?
 
 
Places to learn more:

The Invictus Games in Orlando

Invictus Games – Wikipedia

ESPN Disney Wide World of Sports Complex

Schedule set for Invictus Games at Walt Disney World

Prince Harry to attend Invictus Games in Orlando as 100-day countdown begins

The Invictus Games Foundation