Prince William and Kate Middleton are not going to be present at Prince Harry's annual Invictus Games. This year's event, which will take place from May 9 to 16 at the Hague, will have Meghan Markle to the "front and center."
A royal insider confirmed that Prince William and Kate were not expected at this year's Invictus long before Prince Harry and Meghan announced that they will be stepping back from their royal roles. The source, however, added that the decision of skipping Invictus should not be seen as a snub as the royal family is "hugely supportive" and "very proud" of Prince Harry's work with Invictus.
Prince William joined his brother at the very first Invictus Games in London in 2014. Even Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, were also at the athletic event but Kate missed out since she was experiencing morning sickness with her second pregnancy with Princess Charlotte.
Succeeding Invictus Games were held in Florida, Sydney and Toronto. It was at the Canadian event where Prince Harry and Meghan made public their relationship.
The Invictus Games is a sports event for injured military personnel. Prince Harry was a former serviceman whose experiences in the military, especially in his tour of duty in Afghanistan, has been one of the highlights of his adult life.
Meanwhile, Prince William and Kate are expected to fly to Australia sometime in the spring to visit the victims of bushfire-ravaged towns in New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria. The Cambridge couple, through Kensington Palace, is still finalizing their travel itinerary Down Under with Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
If all goes to plan, Prince William and Kate might be in Australia by April. This will be couple's second visit to the Commonwealth country and the Prince William's fifth time. In 2011, the Duke of Cambridge also visited Australia after the massive flooding in Queensland.
According to reports, Kate would like to include Kangaroo Island in their visit. The island is home to many animals and wildlife that were ravaged by the fire. Prince George is said to be eager to join his parents in the trip to Australia as he loves animals. The third in line to the throne was with his parents on their last visit but he was barely a year old at that time.
According to Women's Day, Kate would love to bring her three kids to their Australian royal tour. It was, apparently, Kate who suggested to Queen Elizabeth that they visit the Commonwealth country after learning of the bushfire devastation.
