Prince Harry climbs Sydney Harbour Bridge Royal to raise Invictus Flag
Prince Harry and Prime Minister Scott Morrison have climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge to raise the flag for the Invictus Games.
Confidential
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The Duke of Sussex and Prime Minister Scott Morrison climbed Sydney Harbour Bridge this afternoon to raise the official Invictus Games Flag and mark the arrival of the Games to the city.
On a stunning Sydney afternoon, the flags billowing in the brisk breeze for all to see, the NSW standard was lowered to bereplaced with the 50sqm black, white and yellow of the Invictus Games flag.
Prince Harry, who with his wife, Meghan, had wowed crowds at Bondi Beach on a grey and misty morning, before the couple headedto Macarthur Girls High School in Parramatta, seemed keen to be doing the climb, which he had done once before, in his teens.
His wife, who is expecting their first child, did not take part. The Prince, dressed in beige trousers and a black shirt,and the PM in black hat and grey t-shirt, chatted to the athletes for several minutes before setting off on the climb.
They ascended the east top arch of the bridge, crossed over the central summit transverse 134m above the water, the PM appearing unable to keep up the quick pace set by former Army officer, Harry.
They took in the spectacular views on a sparkling Sydney afternoon, before returning the way they had come.
They were accompanied on the climb by Luke Hill, Captain Ruth Hunt, Peter Rudland and Invictus Ambassador Gwen Cherne. The group stopped a number of times on the way up and down to chat and to rest.
With a helicopter buzzing overhead, the Prince looked cheerful and happy to be bringing the focus back to the games, which features 500 competitors from 18 nations.
Small groups of onlookers gathered near the southern pylon, while cars slowed and beeped their horns for the Prince.
The games, which are the brainchild of Prince Harry, himself a former army Captain, celebrate the indomitable spirit of sickand injured servicemen and women.
For the prime minister it may have been a welcome break from the Wentworth by-election which, if the ALP does not win, couldresult in a hung parliament. Luke Hill,from Sydney who is competing in the swimming, was deployed to East Timor, in 1999,2000 and 2002.
Captain Ruth Hunt, from Perth WA, a legal officer from the Australian army is competing in the Indoor Rowingand Swimming.
Peter Rudland, from York, Western Australia is competing in the cycling and wheelchair rugby joined the Australian Army in 1989 and was discharged in 2017. He served in to Cambodia, twice in Iraq, twice to East Timor, Leste and Afghanistan.
Invictus Ambassador Gwen Cherne, is the widow of Peter Cafe who served in Cambodia, Timor, Afghanistan and Iraq. He took hisown life in February 2018 and she has since become a passionate Ambassador for the Invictus Games and War Widows Guild.
Prince Harry has climbed to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge with @InvictusSydney competitors and the Prime Minister, to raise the Invictus Flag. MORE: https://t.co/h2rOi6D3ND #RoyalTour #9News pic.twitter.com/ap0CFScSbp
— Nine News Adelaide (@9NewsAdel) October 19, 2018
Royal Surprise sends school into meltdown
ONLY the head teacher, her deputy and the groundsman were supposed to know what was going on. But the word, thanks to social media, got out.
Macarthur Girls school in Parramatta erupted in cheers as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex walked into the building today, overwhelming children in their wake.
Rhiannon, 15, said: “When they walked in I felt like my heart stopped. Their presence just made everyone shocked. I never thought this would actually happen at our school.”
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Maithly, 15, said: “It was a lovely experience and beyond anything I would have ever expected. Nirel, also 15, said: “I was speechless. She, Meghan, is absolutely beautiful. Prince Harry is absolutely beautiful too.”
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian was also on hand, as a group of dancers first entertained their loved-up royal guests with a dance to the Frankie Goes To Hollywood version of The Power of Love.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex spent time talking to to the year nines about the girls’ social justice project and youth empowerment.
They also heard about the NRL’s League in Harmony program which aims to unite and empower young people to be advocates of positive change in their communities.
Meghan had changed from her Martin Grant maxi beach dress she wore at Bondi beach into a $2000 sleeveless navy dress with a pale blue band on the bottom of the skirt by Roksanda.
Earlier, the couple has used the visit to the iconic beach to shine a light on mental health with the Royal revealing it took him 18 months to find someone to talk about his own struggles.
Amid colourful scenes, the couple spent time with OneWave - a surf community group raising awareness for mental health and well-being.
Sitting in the group’s “anti-bad vibe” circle, Prince Harry told them mental health doesn’t discriminate.
“Harry said each and everyone of us will experience poor mental health at some stage in our lives,” Charlotte Connell said.
“Harry said it took him not six months, but 18 months to find the right person to speak to; you’re not going to find the right person to speak to straight away.’”
Mental health is one of the issues closest to the Prince’s heart. He has spoken in the past about his own struggles, and how he bottled up his feelings for 20 years after his mother, the late Princess Diana’s death in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
“I have probably been very close to a complete breakdown on numerous occasions when all sorts of grief and sort of lies and misconceptions and everything are coming to you from every angle,” he said.
The normally cool Bondi crowd were caught up in the Royal fever as the Duchess of Sussex, wearing a $1,615 brown striped maxi-dress by Aussie designer Martin Grant and heeled wedges, and Harry wearing chinos and a blue shirt, hit the beach.
As soon as she hit the sand, Meghan took off the shoes. It was a stark contrast to the time her sister-in-law Catherine kept her shoes on while visiting Manly.
They were presented with their own leis, before joining the circle as part of the group’s mental health awareness session “Fluro Friday”.
The crowd burst into cheers as the pair commenced their long walk from Icebergs down onto the southern end of the beach.
While the pair joined a circle of One Wave supporters kneeling on the sand, the rest of the brightly dressed community demonstrated what a normal fluro Friday would look like, practising yoga and paddling out into the ocean for a surf.
The Duke and duchess spent a generous amount of time sitting with the One Wave community and Prince Harry seemed to speak to the group for much of the session.
OneWave founder Grant Trebilco began by addressing the crowd - a mega phone required - retelling the story about his own struggles with mental health to a large bunch of fluro dresses spectators.
The fluro supporters then lined the shore for a massive Mexican wave.
The Robbins family travelled all the way from Avalon to be part of the spectacle at Bondi this morning. They became supporters after Gabby (Mum) went through a breast cancer diagnosis earlier this year.
Gabby, 40, said the sense of community that One Wave provided was what she admired most.
“I think the big thing is community and knowing that there are people who have your back and people you can turn to. There’s compassion and love and all the things you need when you could easily pull out of situations,” she said.
The royal couple will meet members of the public before taking part in a youth advocate program and will talk with students about social justice and youth empowerment.
Prince Harry will then take his trip to Sydney to new heights by climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
To officially welcome the Invictus Games to the city, the Duke, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and athletes will scale the bridge to plant the Invictus flag. The newlywed’s tour coincides with the Invictus Games in Sydney which runs from October 20-28.
The sporting event founded by Prince Harry in 2014 gives sick and injured service personnel and veterans the opportunity to compete in sports such as wheelchair basketball and sitting volleyball.
The couple arrived back in Sydney on Thursday evening after spending the day delighting eager fans in Melbourne.
The Duke and Duchess dabbled in some footy, got a taste of Australia’s native cuisine, took a tram ride with schoolchildren and visited a blustery bayside beach.
Friday is the couple’s second day in Sydney after a jam-packed Tuesday where they greeted fans at Sydney Opera House, watched a rehearsal from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Bangarra Dance Theatre, visited Taronga Zoo and attended a reception at Admiralty House.
