The Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry on Saturday played a seated volleyball match with army veterans, most wounded in battle against the country’s Islamist insurgency.
The Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan arrived on Friday in the capital Abuja where they visited a school for an event on mental health in a trip that also saw the prince meet wounded Nigerian soldiers in the northwest.
At an officer’s mess complex in Abuja, Harry’s team dressed in yellow played off in an exhibition against a team led by Nigeria’s chief of defence staff, the country’s top commander.
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With chants of “Team Harry, Team Harry” when they scored, the prince’s team took an early lead with players seated on foam mats, some missing legs.
But they lost the match 25-21 to the commander’s squad Team CDS.
On the Duke’s team was former Nigerian soldier Peacemaker Azuegbulam, who lost his leg in combat in the northeast, and became the first African to win gold at the Invictus Games in Germany last year.
Harry, a former army captain who served as a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, founded Invictus in 2014. Since then the games have grown, promoting rehabilitation through sports.
He was invited to visit by Nigeria’s military command. Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa has praised the experience of Nigerian troops at the Invictus Games.
