Skip to main content

TL;DR:

  • Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made their first joint public appearance at the 2017 Invictus Games.
  • They watched a wheelchair tennis match in Toronto, Ontario. 
  • Prince Harry remembers it as ‘a lot to take in.’
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's 2017 Invictus Games appearance where they smiled and laughed
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry | Karwai Tang/WireImage

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 2017 Invictus Games appearance was a major milestone. It marked the first time the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped out as a couple. With the 2022 Invictus Games well underway, Harry revisited the Toronto games, recalling it as “a lot to take in.” 

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made their first public appearance together at the 2017 Invictus Games

Harry and Meghan kept their relationship private long before their royal wedding, children, and life in California. But that changed in 2017 when they made their first public appearance together at the Invictus Games. 

Held in Toronto, Ontario, the Canadian city where Meghan filmed Suits at the time, the two arrived at a wheelchair tennis match holding hands. From the stands, they proceeded to laugh and whisper. 

The outing remains a major moment in Meghan and Harry’s relationship timeline. But it wasn’t even the first time Meghan had been spotted at the Invictus Games. Just days earlier she’d attended the opening ceremony of the games, sitting a few rows away from Harry. 

Prince Harry remembers it as ‘a lot to take in’

Speaking to People at the 2022 Invictus Games in The Hague, Netherlands, Harry recalled the 2017 games with Meghan. 

“The Toronto Games were our first time out and about publicly in an official way,” he said. “We were dating at the time, so it was a lot to take in, but fortunately, we were with the perfect community for that.” 

“There is nowhere you can feel more embraced and supported than with the Invictus family,” the Duke of Sussex added. 

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attended the Invictus Games in April 2022

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry embrace Lisa Johnston she holds a British flag at the Invictus Games
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry | Aaron Chown/PA Images via Getty Images

Five years after they first stepped out as a couple, Meghan and Harry’s Invictus Games appearances haven’t let up. The pair headed to The Hague, Netherlands, for the Invictus Games in April 2022. Over three days, they cheered on competitors, greeted crowds, and had a few moments of PDA. At the opening ceremony, Meghan introduced Harry as the founder of the games and her “incredible husband. They even shared a kiss onstage. 

 And, as Harry said, it “means everything” to him to share the Invictus Games with Meghan. 

“Now, five years later, here we are in The Hague at the fifth Invictus Games, as parents of two, and living in the US,” he said. “I had always wanted to share these incredible moments with someone special, and to have Meg by my side means everything.”

Harry and Meghan’s Invictus Games appearance isn’t the only big spring event they have on their calendar. Their son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, turns three on May 6, 2022. Less than two weeks later, on May 19, 2022, Meghan and Harry will celebrate their wedding anniversary. Then on June 4, 2022, their daughter, Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, will be a year old. 

Best in Entertainment