Call is out for Invictus athletes

Peter Mallett, Staff Writer ~

Soldier On is now accepting applications for the 2019 Warrior Games and 2020 Invictus Games.

Both international competitions are intended to inspire ill and injured military personnel and veterans to recovery through participation in adaptive sport.

Eligibility is open to those who acquired a permanent physical or mental health injury or illness as a member of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).

The application deadline is Dec. 31, 2018.

Canada will be participating in its second Warrior Games after its inaugural participation earlier this year. The tenth annual games kick off next June in Tampa, Fla. They will involve athletes from the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Canada, Denmark and the Netherlands competing in a variety of sports including archery, cycling, shooting, sitting volleyball, swimming, track and field, wheelchair basketball, indoor rowing and powerlifting.

Last month, 40 Canadian athletes travelled to Australia for the Invictus Game 2018 Sydney that included 500 competitors from 18 nations competing in 11 different adaptive sports. The Fifth Invictus Games will be held in The Hague, Netherlands, in May 2020.

Team Canada members will be required to attend two training camps in the months leading up to the Games.

Canada’s Games teams are run by the Canadian Armed Forces Soldier On program. Since its inception in 2007 it has assisted more than 5,000 ill and injured members obtain sporting or recreational equipment, gain access to high-level training from world-class instructors and supported their participation in sports competition, and also a wide variety of structured activities from skiing to fishing to adventure expeditions.

Soldier On spokesperson Lieutenant (Navy) Kelly Boyden of the Joint Personnel Support Unit (JPSU) said her staff are looking to fill approximately 40 spots on its roster for next year’s Warrior Games, while the number of roster spots for the Invictus Games is still to be determined. As was the case with this year’s Invictus Games team, Soldier On is looking for new participants and will not consider applications of competitors from past Games.

“It is important to provide these once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to as many participants as possible,” said Lt(N) Boyden.

For more information on Soldier On and how to apply for the Invictus and Warrior Games, visit their webpage.