Since 2014, the Invictus Games have used the power of sport to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and generate a wider understanding of all those who serve their country. The fourth Invictus Games takes place in Sydney, Australia, in October.

Over 500 competitors from 18 nations will compete in 10 different adaptive sports: athletics, archery, wheelchair basketball, road cycling, powerlifting, indoor rowing, wheelchair rugby, swimming and sitting volleyball. Plus, sailing and wheelchair tennis which are new to the Games.

Invictus spirit

Help for Heroes Athlete Pathway Manager and Team UK Chef de Mission, Jayne Kavanagh, said: “The Invictus spirit is a powerful demonstration of the dedication displayed by these individuals when they served our country. It is a celebration of how these individuals have confronted hardship whilst refusing to be defi ned by their injury and illness. With the interest in Team UK growing year-on-year, we know that there are many more who are yet to reach out for our support. Help for Heroes’ involvement with the team seeks to ensure that individuals can continue their recovery through sport and that this support will continue for life”.

Former Lieutenant Colonel and Team UK Vice Captain, Spencer Bull, spoke with Able Magazine and said: “I went for the trials earlier this year and was delighted, well honoured, privileged and chuffed to bits. I was selected to be in the team but also selected to be Vice Captain.

It’s part of my transition journey, my Invictus journey, to find myself and my potential; that’s what I’m really trying to do. But it was also important to me that I was doing it for the family. Living with a disability, living with challenges is not the end of the world and actually, you can do things if you put your mind to it, in an adaptive way. I get a huge satisfaction just watching the others progress
and develop. It’s almost as much, if not more satisfying, than competing myself.”

Spencer also recognises the ongoing support of his family, of which he’s evidently very proud, saying: “They are the unsung heroes and giving back to them is fantastic. I can’t wait to see my children’s faces when I compete; wherever I finish doesn’t matter. But just to do it and show them that we can do something is fantastic. My Invictus journey is much more than these Games. It’s taking me forward in life.”

Team UK The UK delegation to the Invictus Games Sydney, 2018 is being delivered by a partnership comprising Help for Heroes, the Ministry of Defence and The Royal British Legion.

www.invictusgamesfoundation.org
www.invictusgames2018.org
www.helpforheroes.org.uk
www.britishlegion.org.uk