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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were serenaded with God Save The King, cheers and a smattering of boos as they spent their first day in Whistler promoting the next Invictus Games. The couple looked thrilled to be spending Valentine’s Day in Canada – the country where they fell in love – as they hit the slopes followed by a film crew. The couple are in the picturesque ski resort of Whistler, in British Columbia, for a two-day trip from California to highlight next year’s event, the first time it will involve winter sports.
Harry and Meghan were smiling and hand-in-hand as they arrived at the ski station, watched by what appeared to be their own film crew. The former Suits star also appeared to be filming on her phone as Harry tried a ski chair for disabled athletes and spoke to instructors as well as competitors training for Invictus 2025. Harry had a go at sit-skiing and before he set off, had joked: ‘Do I need to sign a waiver?’. Afterwards a group serenaded the couple with a rendition of ‘God Save The King’. Meghan waved as she got into a Jeep while Harry may have spoken to them. One skier said: ‘He was very nice’.
They did not appear at all affected by the row over their Sussex.com website row – and criticism over their use of the royal links despite their rift with the Windsors and an agreement with the Queen not to use their HRH titles for business purposes or trade off their royal connections. The Whistler trip is also their first public appearance as a couple since King Charles’s cancer diagnosis. Archie, four, and Lilibet, two, appear to have stayed at home in Montecito.
Meghan was all smiles and glamour in skinny white jeans and a sweater topped with a beige quilted coat. She was flashing her £140,000 ($175K) engagement ring. The Duchess has not been seen publicly wearing the glittering band, comprising one huge Botswana diamond and two from Princess Diana’s collection, since May 2023. Harry was dressed down in jeans and a black Eddie Bauer anorak as he arrived for a training session with athletes planning to take part in the 2025 Games.
The pair were spotted bending down to talk to athletes competing at the games, while Harry tried out one of the competitors’ sit-skis, all while being followed close behind by a camera crew. Meghan was seen smiling with officials as she used her mobile to gather content.
Harry and Meghan made their way out of the gondola on Whistler’s Blackcomb Mountain shortly after 2.30pm local time and were introduced to three groups of adaptive skiers: one Alpine sit-ski, one standing ski and one group of visually impaired athletes.
Their trip to Canada comes as the couple are embroiled in a series of controversies – one over their new Sussex.com website and another over Harry’s flying visit to London last week to see King Charles following his cancer diagnosis. Alex Cairns, a sit-skier from Canada, was the first to meet the Sussexes and gave a demonstration of the sport – arriving at the base of the slope to cheers from Harry. The Whistler games will be the first time that Invictus has featured winter sports.
The couple arrived in Canada on Tuesday and were pictured by DailyMail.com touching down in Vancouver just after noon Pacific time following a two-hour flight from Santa Barbara – the closest airport to their home in Montecito. Their arrival came on the same day that Meghan announced she had signed a new podcast deal with Lemonada Media after she and Harry parted ways with Spotify. A convoy of cars collected the famous duo and whisked them away to Whistler where they are due to be on Wednesday and Thursday before they return to Vancouver for an event in the City of Glass on Friday.
The pair are then expected to travel home to California on Friday afternoon to be reunited with their children Archie, five, and Lilibet, two. The Duke and Dutchess are currently embroiled in an ongoing row over their rebranded ‘royal’ website Sussex.com – complete with Meghan’s coat of arms – which critics claim is a breach of their promise to the late Queen when they acrimoniously quit front-line royal duties. Sources now saying the couple did not consult palace officials about using their Sussex titles.
A source close to the couple defended the use of their royal titles, saying: ‘Prince Harry and Meghan are the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. That is a fact. It is their surname and family name.’ Yesterday, Meghan, 42, was forced to put out a statement defending the graphic design company that created the couple’s new website. Harry has also faced criticism over the short amount of time he spent in the UK following his father’s cancer diagnosis.
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