Ahead of the Invictus Games in Toronto this September, Prince Harry opened up about helping wounded soldiers push past their mental scars -- and overcoming his own.
In a preview of a candid interview with CTV National News’ Chief Anchor and Senior Editor Lisa LaFlamme, airing Friday night at 9 p.m. ET, Prince Harry spoke about his brainchild, an international sporting event that allows wounded soldiers to represent their countries once again on a global platform.
“That’s my fix,” Prince Harry said of the Invictus Games, which will be held in Toronto from Sept. 23 to Sept. 30.
“Everybody who is in the military and then leaves needs to be connected to something. I’ve just sort of created my own thing to get them all to come to us,” he said. “And no matter what country they are from, it’s a meeting of minds. Everybody knows what they’ve been through…and that’s what I love.”
Prince Harry served in the British Army for 10 years, rising to the rank of Captain. He is the only member of the Royal Family to have been deployed to the front lines in Afghanistan.
“Once you wear that uniform, you’re the same as everybody else,” he told LaFlamme. “I convinced myself for 10 years that, while I was there, I was one of the lads. I was doing a job and I had a role.”
Prince Harry has also been speaking out about the importance of mental health and the need to help wounded soldiers heal more than their physical scars.
In discussing how mental health issues can affect soldiers during and after deployment, Prince Harry opened up about his own emotions in the years since his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, died in a 1997 car crash in Paris.
“I lost my mom when I was 12 so (my) emotions were locked away very, very early on,” he said, recalling how his mother would “put everybody before herself.”
He also highlighted his mother’s work to advance various causes over the years and “taking the cameras” with her to places where mainstream western media had never been before.
Like his mother, Prince Harry is also using his clout to promote his message – the importance of mental health and continued overall support for armed forces.
“If you are one person, it’s very, very hard to come forward,” he said. “But what we’ve managed to create is a platform and a community where people and individuals and families as well can all come together and share those experiences and know for themselves that they’re not alone,” he said.
“The general public across the world want to support their armed forces. And what better way to do it this year, in Canada.”
The full one-hour special “Prince Harry: Journey to Invictus” airs Friday night at 9 p.m. ET on CTV.
