Vancouver is nearly a week away from welcoming hundreds of military members and veterans to compete in one of the world's premier adaptive sports competitions.
The city is co-hosting the seventh annual Invictus Games with Whistler Feb. 8 to 16, which will showcase six winter sports for the first time in its history.
Local fans will be treated to indoor sports at the Vancouver Convention Centre (VCC), Hillcrest Recreation Centre and UBC Aquatic Centre (see full schedule below).
Additionally, the opening and closing ceremonies will be performed at BC Place and Rogers Arena respectively.
VCC, according to organizers, "will serve as the main 'hub' of the Games," and will also witness pool and playoff play for wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, sitting volleyball and indoor rowing.
The Vancouver Invictus Village at VCC will run daily starting Feb. 9 with booths, concessions, giveaways and stage programming between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m.; hours will be extended until 10 p.m. on select dates for live finals broadcasts.
Wheelchair curling will take place at Hillcrest, which is also the home of Vancouver Curling Club, while swimmers will compete in the 50-metre pool at UBC Aquatic Centre.
What are the Invictus Games?
This is the second Invictus Games to be held in Canada, eight years after Toronto 2017.
Almost 25 nations will be represented across 11 sports by nearly 550 competitors, 56 of which will wear Canada's maple leaf.
Prince Harry founded and inaugurated the games in 2014.
The Duke of Sussex, after returning from his deployment in Afghanistan, was inspired to create the games after watching the coffin of a Danish soldier being loaded on a plane for repatriation and after a visit to the US Warrior Games in 2013, according to the Invictus website.
Harry created the international Invictus Games as a means "to celebrate the unconquered human spirit, and shine a spotlight on these men and women who served."
As well, the Invictus Games Foundation was assembled to offer a "recovery pathway" for wounded, injured and sick service members.
"We collaborate to provide opportunities for post-traumatic growth: enabling those involved to reclaim their purpose, identity and future, beyond injury," the website explained.
"Through providing sport recovery opportunities and adventurous challenge, the Foundation’s work supports long term improvements in physical and mental health, inspires change and motivates wider society, and helps wounded injured and sick service personnel and veterans reconnect with their families and communities."
“Life is short, and tomorrow is not promised - don't be afraid to try anything and everything you can!”
— Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025 (@InvictusGames25) January 29, 2025
Meet Melissa Norris, a retired Critical Care Nursing Officer who served 17 years in the Canadian Armed Forces, including three tours in Afghanistan. Her dedication to her… pic.twitter.com/lEybUSMScr
What, when and where
So, what can Vancouver fans expect from the 2025 games, which sports is the city hosting, and when do the events take place?
A full schedule for the Vancity side of the Invictus Games 2025 is as follows:
Saturday, Feb. 8
- Opening ceremony
- BC Place - 777 Pacific Blvd.
- 1 to 3 p.m.
- Performances by Katy Perry, Noah Kahan, Nelly Furtado and Roxanne Bruneau
- Wheelchair basketball
- VCC - 1055 Canada Pl.
- Pool play = 6:20 to 9:30 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 9
- Wheelchair basketball
- VCC - 1055 Canada Pl.
- Pool play and semi-finals = 8:20 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Finals = 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
- Wheelchair curling
- Hillcrest Recreation Centre - 4575 Clancy Loranger Way
- Pools, semi-finals and finals = 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 13
- Wheelchair rugby
- VCC - 1055 Canada Pl.
- Pool play and semi-finals = 8:20 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- Finals = 7 to 10 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 14
- Swimming
- UBC Aquatic Centre - 6080 Student Union Blvd.
- Heats = 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Finals = 4 to 9:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 15
- Sitting volleyball
- VCC - 1055 Canada Pl.
- Pool play and semi-finals = 8:20 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- Finals = 7 to 10 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 16
- Indoor rowing
- VCC - 1055 Canada Pl.
- Finals = 8:20 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- Closing ceremony
- Rogers Arena - 800 Griffiths Way
- 6 to 8 p.m.
- Performances by Jelly Roll, Barenaked Ladies, and The War and Treaty husband-wife duo Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter
If you can't make the Games in person, the Invictus YouTube channel will also stream the events while TSN will carry daily highlights.
For more information and tickets to Invictus Games 2025 in Vancouver, you can visit the competition's website.
Canadian Armed Forces Combat Engineer, Mark Smith, says training for the Invictus Games has made him “feel like a kid again.” Go Team Canada!#InvictusGames#ShareYourIAM@CanadianForces@SoldierOnCAN@InvictusGames25 pic.twitter.com/wGRN1Bjndy
— Veterans Affairs CA (@VeteransENG_CA) January 30, 2025
