In May, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will embark on some major travel in support of the Invictus Games, the biennial sporting event for wounded veterans that Harry helped to found in 2014. On Monday, the Invictus Games Foundation announced that Harry will head to the UK to attend a service of thanksgiving in honor of the organization’s 10th anniversary at St Paul’s Cathedral. Later in May, Meghan will join him for a trip to Nigeria by request of the country’s government. The trip will be the couple’s first official international tour since leaving their royal roles in 2020.
On May 8, the Invictus Games ceremony will be led by St Paul’s dean, the Very Reverend Andrew Tremlett, and actor Damian Lewis will read the Invictus poem, which gave the games their name. According to the Daily Mail, Harry is likely to stay in a hotel, as he has on his last few visits to the country. During previous visits to the UK, his wife and children, Lili and Archie, have not joined due to his ongoing concern over his security arrangements in the country.
Later in the month, Harry and Meghan will travel to Nigeria to meet with service members and participate in other cultural activities. In a statement, the country’s acting director of defense information, Tukur Gusau, explained the purpose of the couple’s trip. “The Defense Headquarters has expressed its honor and delight for the acceptance of the Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry, and his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan, to visit Nigerian in May 2024,” it read. “The visit is to consolidate Nigeria’s strong hold at the game and the possibility of hosting the event in later years.”
Nigeria sent its first delegation of wounded veterans to last year’s Games in Düsseldorf, and competitors for the country came home with a gold medal in powerlifting and a bronze in table tennis. During the games, they were joined by the country’s defense minister, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar Badaru. According to Gusau, the minister expressed that he would be interested in hosting a future edition of the Games in the country.
In Harry’s comments during the opening ceremony, he referenced the new additions, adding he thought his wife would support Nigeria during the games. “Now, I’m not saying we play favorites in our home,” he said. “But since my wife discovered that she’s of Nigerian descent, it’s likely to get a little bit competitive this year.” In a 2022 episode of her podcast Archetypes, Meghan told Nigerian-American comedian Ziwe Fumudoh that a DNA test had revealed that she was 43% Nigerian.
The 2025 Invictus Games are set to take place in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada next February and will feature the addition of winter sports for the first time. Earlier this year, Meghan and Harry traveled to the region to visit with competitors preparing for next year’s games at a training camp.