Meghan Markle Wows The Crowd With Unscheduled Speech At Invictus Games Closing Ceremony
Meghan Markle could probably add “Queen Of The Invictus Games” to her long list of royal titles. People Magazine reports that the Duchess of Sussex gave an unscheduled speech at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games to rapturous applause from the audience.
During the speech, Duchess Meghan congratulated competitors for their athleticism and sportsmanship.
“It’s such an honor to be here tonight with all of you and supporting my husband at the Invictus Games, which he founded four years ago,” she said at the beginning of her remarks. “In a short span of time, the games have evolved into an international platform of some of the best athletics and sportsmanship you could ever witness, coupled with a camaraderie and close-knit community, which can only be defined as the Invictus spirit.”
Dressed in an olive green tuxedo dress by Antonio Berardi and nude pumps by Aquazzura, Meghan recounted her experience of visiting troops on active duty when she was an actress on Suits.
“I’m not sure if many of you know this, but a few years ago, before I had met my husband, I had the incredible honor of visiting troops deployed all over the world, from the U.K. to Italy and Afghanistan, and several other countries,” she said. “I was able to see the unshakable bonds between service men and women on the ground together, but at the same time to feel the palpable longing for family and friends while deployed.”
The duchess went on to thank “the Invictus family” for embracing her now that she’s married to Prince Harry, the founder, and patron of the games.
She also spoke about the time that one of the competitors literally embraced her after the sailing competition. Meghan revealed that the man who became famous for giving Prince Harry a bear hug used to be paralyzed from the waist down. But thanks to his “strength of spirit” and the support of his family, he was able to walk and sail again.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are now on the final stretch of their first major tour of the Commonwealth. The tour has taken them to various parts of Australia, Fiji and Tonga. So far their engagements have focused mostly on environmental conservation, mental health issues, and female empowerment, causes that both the duke and duchess have expressed a passion for in the past. The last leg of the tour is about to get underway as Meghan and Harry travel to New Zealand before they head back to England.
