Prince Harry gets set to launch Invictus Games tomorrow and ‘reflect on how special Canada is to him and wife Meghan’

Prince Harry is set to tell how special Canada is to him and wife Meghan as he gets set to launch the Invictus Games in Vancouver tomorrow.

Harry will tell crowds of his fond memories of their time spent in the country when the couple attend the Vancouver Whistler 2025’s One Year to Go celebrations later this week, according to The Telegraph. 

The event, which will take place between Wednesday and Friday, aims to raise awareness of the 2025 Invictus Games, which will take place February 8 and February 16 next year.

Harry and Meghan are said to have relished their time spent on Vancouver Island, where they went after leaving their royal duties in 2019. 

The Duke has previously spoken about how Canada felt like home to him and that ‘we could imagine spending the rest of our lives there’. Meghan is also said to hold a great affection for Canada having lived in Toronto while filming ‘Suits’. 

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry attend the Wheelchair Tennis on day 3 of the Invictus Games Toronto 2017

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex walks onto the ice before the Vancouver Canucks face the San Jose Sharks in an NHL game at the Rogers Arena on November 20, 2023

The Duchess of Sussex at the IG25 and Team Canada Reception at the Hilton Hotel during the Invictus Games in Dusseldorf, Germany on September 15, 2023

Harry and Meghan stayed on Vancouver Island at a £14m home in North Saanich, British Columbia, following their decision to step back from being working members of the royal family.

The split was termed as Megxit and the couple stayed in Canada several months before relocating to Montecito in California before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Harry also wrote in his memoir Spare that Vancouver offered him a ‘taste of freedom’ that inspired them to make a more permanent escape from public life.

He wrote: ‘What if life could be like that … all the time? What if we could spend at least part of each year somewhere far away, still doing work for the Queen, but beyond the reach of the press?’ 

‘If we could just find a place the press didn’t know about, we said, Canada might be the answer. Meg got in touch with a Vancouver friend, who connected us with an estate agent, and we started looking at houses.’ 

Ahead of next year’s games, the Governments of Canada and British Columbia have pledged to spend almost £20m to stage the games in February 2025.

And for the first time adaptive winter sports including alpine skiing, Nordic skiing and curling will be included in the programme of weeklong events and staged in the resort of Whistler.

Officials have said the local indigenous population are being consulted over the planning of the games.

Harry and Meghan attend the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023 at Merkur Spiel-Arena on September 16, 2023

During their time in Vancouver, Harry and Meghana are also expected to visit the Invictus training camp in the Whistler ski resort.

Their trip comes amid claims the appointment of TV executive Scott Moore as the new Invictus CEO will help them push for a big new broadcast deal. 

Mr Moore is replacing the Duke of Sussex’s friend and former aide Nick Booth, who took over on a temporary basis last year amid chaos at the top when two bosses were abruptly sacked in the Autumn.

He has a reputation for doing big sports TV deals and overseeing coverage of numerous Olympic and Paralympic Games, the FIFA World Cup and the Commonwealth Games while a boss at CBC, Canada’s public broadcaster.

Experts have said that his appointment is a big hint that Harry and Meghan will be using their ‘star power’ and his links to win a big broadcast deal for Invictus 2025, which will feature winter sports for the first time – probably with Netflix getting first refusal.

Invictus Dusseldorf last September had its ceremonies and sports streamed via its website. The BBC also showed events via the red button and iPlayer but it was not shown widely on German TV.

Brand and culture expert Nick Ede told MailOnline: ‘Harry’s latest move with the hiring of Scott Moore shows that he is one step closer to launching the Games with a big TV deal.

Prince Harry has made a TV exec with 40 years of experience, Scott Moore (pictured), the new CEO of the Invictus Games in 2025

The Duke of Sussex with Nick Booth when he ran The Royal Foundation with Harry and William, a former royal aide to him and his brother. Mr Booth was running Invictus 2025 in Vancouver-Whistler for a few months after the last CEO left abruptly

‘We have seen lately how Amazon, Netflix and now Disney have secured the rights to big sporting event TV and they know that there is money and also subscriptions up for grabs with the right sports.

‘Now that the Invictus Games has extended to hosting a winter event too its beginning to shadow both the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games and can become a major television event with the likes of Scott behind it.

‘Harry and Meghan have the star power to drive the games and as we know its Harry’s sweet spot and something he is clearly passionate about. 

‘The documentary he made for Netflix wasn’t the hit hoped for but it did do what it needed to do and inform and educate people about the games, their purpose and their importance too’.

But if Harry is pushing for a more global audience, and wider coverage in North America, Netflix will be at the front of the queue with Disney also expected to bid and the couple will hope the new CEO’s influence could help them after their Invictus documentary was considered a flop.

Mr Moore’s appointment came after CEO Peter Lawless and Chief Commercial Office Bill Cooper left abruptly in the Autumn.

Insiders told MailOnline they were both sacked ‘for no reason’ and warned that while Scott is a ‘star hire’ there are concerns about the management of the Games with just 12 months to go.