Unconquerable: The Invictus Spirit
‘You are all Invictus, you are now ambassadors for the spirit of these games. Never stop fighting and do all you can to lift up everyone around you…’The Invictus Games change lives and save lives.Created and spearheaded by Prince Harry, for whom this is a very personal cause, the Games are for current and former servicemen and women who have been wounded, injured or sick.Most races are about who gets to the finish line first. At the Invictus Games, even making the start line is an achievement beyond measure. Triple amputees, cancer survivors, multiple sclerosis patients, PTSD sufferers and many more all compete. They have been through the darkest of times, but in the camaraderie of competition they find hope anew.Unconquerable: The Invictus Spirit represents the spirit of the Games, upholding a message of self-determination, positivity and sacrifice. These stories of the Invictus athletes will inspire you, give you the courage and determination to succeed, and act as a ‘bedside Samaritan’ for anyone to turn to in their hour of need.These are the people who make the Invictus Games what they are. These are their stories. They come from all over the world. They are ordinary people who have done, and continue to do, extraordinary things. They are the power of the human spirit. They are Invictus. They are Unconquerable.
Читать Unconquerable: The Invictus Spirit онлайн беплатно
HarperCollinsPublishers
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
First published by HarperCollinsPublishers 2017
FIRST EDITION
© Boris Starling 2017
Cover layout design by Claire Ward © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2017
Cover photograph © Daily Mail 2014 (main image), © Shutterstock (wheelchair figure)
Plate-section photographs courtesy of the competitors, except where indicated
Boris Starling asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work
While every effort has been made to trace the owners of copyright material reproduced herein and secure permissions, the publishers would like to apologise for any omissions and will be pleased to incorporate missing acknowledgements in any future edition of this book.
A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Find out about HarperCollins and the environment at
Source ISBN: 9780008240080
Ebook Edition © September 2017 ISBN: 9780008240103
Version: 2017-08-07
For those who competed in London and Orlando, for those who are competing in Toronto, and for those who will compete in Sydney and beyond. You are an inspiration, each and every one of you. You are unconquered.
CONTENTS
Prologue: The Night Which Covers Me
2 This Place of Wrath and Tears
4 How Charged with Punishments the Scroll
5 The Fell Clutch of Circumstance
The Invictus Games are an international multisport event for WIS (wounded, injured and sick) Armed Services personnel and veterans. The Games use the power of sport to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and increase awareness of the sacrifices made by those who serve.
The first Invictus Games took place in London on 10–14 September 2014. Thirteen nations were represented and 413 competitors took part: Afghanistan, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. Competitions took place across nine adaptive sports: archery, athletics, indoor rowing, powerlifting, road cycling, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby. The Presenting Partner, Jaguar Land Rover, also offered a driving challenge.
The inaugural Invictus Games have created the blueprint for inspiring many more ‘wounded warriors’ on their journey of recovery, and the success of the Games prompted the organisers to stage a follow-up. They know that hundreds more wounded warriors around the world could benefit from taking part in the Invictus Games. So they established the Invictus Games Foundation to develop and pursue the Invictus Games legacy and continue to make a difference to the lives of wounded, injured and sick Service personnel around the world.
There was not enough time to get one up and running in 2015, so the second Invictus Games took place in Orlando, Florida, on 8–12 May 2016. All the nations from 2014 participated again, plus Jordan. Wheelchair tennis was added to the roster of sports. Altogether 485 competitors took part.
The third Invictus Games are taking place in Toronto on 23–30 September 2017. Romania and Ukraine are competing for the first time, and golf has been added to the list of sports. More than 550 competitors are taking part.
The fourth Invictus Games will take place in Sydney on 20–27 October 2018.
This book gives an insight into the lives of servicemen and women who have been wounded or faced life-changing illness in the Armed Forces: what goes through their minds at the moment of injury; the effect this event has on their family and friends; the long and often painful road to recovery; where they find the strength and courage to keep fighting; and how they embrace a life that they had never imagined.
The stories of the men and women in this book are some of the most inspiring examples of courage and determination you will read anywhere. Not because they are superhuman; in fact, quite the opposite – they are normal people who have fought hard to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges and come back stronger! I am extremely grateful to them for sharing their experiences so honestly. I am also delighted that they have been given this opportunity to tell their stories and, in doing so, inspire millions of people around the world by their example.
