Before the ESPYs began, it was known that Prince Harry would receive the Pat Tillman Award for Service because of his work with veterans for founding the Invictus Games. There was considerable blowback, and the late NFL player/army corporal’s mother, Mary, was “shocked” by the decision to reward Prince Harry.
Despite his origins from across the pond and regal status, Prince Harry presented himself extremely well in a speech that lasted almost five minutes, where he acknowledged Mary Tillman — who had no input on the award recipient — and expounded upon the Invictus Games, an Olympic-style competition for injured, sick, and wounded servicemen and women.
"No matter the road ahead, we are here for you. We will leave no one behind.”
-Prince Harry after accepting the Pat Tillman Award for Service ❤️ pic.twitter.com/8VBXBggYP4
— ESPN (@espn) July 12, 2024
The Invictus Games have been going on for 10 years strong. My favorite quote from Prince Harry’s entire acceptance speech highlighted how divided the modern world appears to be, yet through community and the Games, he sees how so many people from different backgrounds come together.
“While so much progress has been made since those first Games, the world outside seems to be an even more precarious state. We live in an age marked by polarization and division. Conflicts rage around the globe. Anger and resentment towards those who are different seem to pervade societies everywhere. Our community challenges that. Our community proves that unity is not just possible but formidable.
The beauty of the Invictus Games lies in how it brings people together no matter one’s nationality, background, or personal struggles. It is a collective built from courage and mutual respect, where athletes discover time and time again the common denominator of their humanity. Having survived the crucible of armed combat, and forged through the challenge to rebuild bodies and minds impacted by conflict, they form a family. They exemplify the very best in all of us.”
ESPN put together a great package narrated by Will Arnett that showed the vital philanthropic work Prince Harry does with the larger veteran community.
Prince Harry is the recipient of the Pat Tillman Award for Service.
The Duke of Sussex founded The Invictus Games, an international platform that supports wounded, injured, and sick servicemen and women who are navigating both physical and invisible injuries. pic.twitter.com/M3F3Rmft4j
— ESPN (@espn) July 12, 2024
As someone who agreed with the widespread consensus that Prince Harry receiving an award named after Pat Tillman felt like a bizarre choice on the surface, the night at the ESPYs certainly has me changing my tune. Can’t speak for anyone else, but I have a feeling Prince Harry really endeared himself to a lot of Americans. Anything that can be done to support veterans is a great cause. Whomever the source is, what does it matter as long as so much good is being done on behalf of those who protect our country across the world?
It’s also worth noting that Prince Harry served in the British Army from 2005 through 2015 and was deployed during the War in Afghanistan. The Duke of Sussex conceived the idea for the Invictus Games while returning home from Afghanistan, where he saw a fallen soldier’s coffin loaded on his trip home for repatriation, per the Invictus Games Foundation official website. You can donate to the Invictus Games via the website, and learn more about the organization’s mission there. It’s a great cause.
The next Invictus Games will be held in 2025 in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada. Check out some of the highlights from the first day of the 2023 event, which took place in Düsseldorf, Germany, this past September.
