GLORY DAYS
From the glitter of royalty to the grit of warrior athletes, our week of hosting the Invictus Games was a thrill, an honour and a privilege
If there’s a single image that sticks out in my mind from the 2017 Invictus Games our city has played host to from the past week, it’s from Tuesday evening, Sept. 26: Prince Harry on one knee before triple amputee Mark Ormrod, who lost both legs and an arm fighting in Afghanistan with the U.K. Royal Marine Commandos, presenting him with a silver medal for his rowing performance at the games. That moment seems to sum something up about these games as we’ve experienced them. The glamour and good humour of the prince, of course, which have entranced photographers from around the world throughout the event he’s hosted here. The pure joyful jubilance on Ormrod’s face after his performance. The moment of recognition of his accomplishment — a physical feat achieved a decade after losing his limbs to an explosive device. And, of course, the plain symbolism of Harry, a member of the Royal Family before whom we might typically expect others to bow or bend the knee or show deference, genuflecting before Ormrod in gratitude and congratulation.
It was an “honour” for the prince, said a statement from Kensington Palace. Well said.
It has been an honour. An honour for our city to witness and be a part of these games. Prince Harry might have provided the glitz that drew our attention, but it has been the athletes who have rewarded that attention, awed us with their performances, drawn our admiration.
Like Kelly Scanlan, who came home to Canada with an injured leg and a post-traumatic stress injury after serving in Afghanistan, and told us how training for and participating in the games made a “huge change” in her life. “We can look at each other and know that every single one of us had to fight some battle to get from where we were to where we are now,” Scanlan said.
Or like transgender athlete Aaron Stewart, a former American soldier competing in his third Invictus Games, but his first as a man — reflecting, as a games spokesperson said, that everyone is welcome.
Or retired Canadian corporal Michael Clarke, left paralyzed by a motorcycle accident, winning four medals.
So many stories — a story for each of the 550 competitors from 17 countries, each of them a wounded war veteran now competing in adaptive events here. Each of them inspiring a small jolt of admiration.
Some of them win gold medals, silver medals, bronze medals. But all of them are awarded a medallion to recognize their participation. And you won’t hear any complaints about any coddled “everyone gets a trophy” attitude around here. This is an event where how the competitors play the game really is the most important, and admirable, part. It is the reason for the games’ existence — giving them a chance to represent their countries in uniform again, a goal to focus on, a reason to focus on physical, emotional, and mental rehabilitation. It has been our honour to get to know them. And a pleasure, it must be said. These games have brought us the kind of fun that fills entertainment magazines: Prince Harry and his girlfriend Meghan Markle’s first public appearance, performances by musical troubadour headliners both new (Brampton’s Alessia Cara at the opening ceremony) and older (New Jersey’s Bruce Springsteen at the closing ceremony), more reasons to celebrate in Nathan Phillips Square and host some big rollicking parties.
But these games also brought us the pleasure of the sports themselves, in venues across the city. The startling speed of sitting volleyball, the thunderous action of wheelchair rugby, the awe-inspiring prosthetics of the track events, the blur of handpropelled bicycles — from the old Maple Leaf Gardens to Fort York, from the Pan Am Centre in Scarborough to York University in North York, many of us have been introduced to these adaptive sports for the first time. And many of us may be embarrassed to find ourselves surprised at how exciting they are to watch.
This is only the third Invictus Games. Those of us who’ve seen them up close can only hope they become a long and storied tradition, and be glad we got the opportunity to have them in our city.
An honour and a pleasure: that sums up Toronto’s experience of hosting the Invictus Games. We can only bend our knee to the athletes who participated and thank them, and hope they enjoyed the games half as much as we did. Edward Keenan writes on city issues ekeenan@thestar.ca. Follow: @thekeenanwire