As Team Canada arrives in Victoria, BC, for the first week of training in the run-up to the 2017 Invictus Games, Early Warning’s very own Art Lead and Military Advisor, Dave Desjardins, is on hand with updates.
“This is an incredible experience already, and I’ve already overcome so many barriers,” said Dave. “And that was after day one. No matter how I do in September, I’ve already won.” – Dave Desjardins
Team Canada has 90 athletes, including 16 basketball players. Overall, this year’s games include 550 competitors in 12 different sporting events.
“The coaches and trainers are Olympic level,” continued Dave. “From what I’ve seen, Team Canada is going to bring it, in the 2017 Invictus games.”
The athletes are training for up to six hours a day at top facilities including the Pacific Institute for Sports Excellence (PISE). For the basketball team, that means hill training, chair handling drills, ball handling drills and shooting techniques.
“There’s a real sense here of re-establishing the sense of family we had in the military – just a group of people that never met coming together as a team to represent something larger than themselves. It’s a really powerful feeling.”
All players are involved with Soldier On, a Canadian Armed Forces program that promotes rehabilitation through sports. The Invictus Games were founded by Prince Harry in 2014 with the objective of using the power of sports to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and generate a wider understand for veterans and their families.
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