July 27 (UPI) — Melania Trump said Thursday she will lead the U.S. delegation to the 2017 Invictus Games in Toronto — her first solo trip as first lady.
The Invictus Games, a global competition for injured military men and women, will run from Sept. 23-30.
The White House said she will lead the delegation in support of the 90 Americans slated to compete.
Overall, the games will include more than 550 wounded service members from 17 allied countries.
“I was heartened by the great success of the inaugural Invictus Games … and the second games in Orlando,” the first lady said in a statement. “The Invictus Games have allowed thousands of injured and wounded servicemen and women from many different countries to participate in adaptive sports competitions — something that should be lauded and supported worldwide. I am honored by the opportunity to represent our country at this year’s games.”
The inaugural games started in London in 2014, and the second were played in Orlando in 2016. The games were not held in 2015 to allow Orlando to raise funds to host.
The Invictus Games were launched by Britain’s Prince Harry, or, if so inclined, Prince Henry of Wales, who joked at the time that the U.S. equivalent, the Warrior Games, was “such a good idea by the Americans that it had to be stolen.”
The competitors for the 2017 games will participate in 12 adaptive sports, including archery, athletics, indoor rowing, powerlifting, road cycling, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair tennis, wheelchair rugby and golf.
