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‘Leave Meghan at home': Prince Harry's secret negotiations ahead of rumoured reconciliation at Invictus Games

‘Leave Meghan at home': Prince Harry's secret negotiations ahead of rumoured reconciliation at Invictus Games

Sky News AU4 days ago
Prince Harry has reportedly begun 'negotiations' with the royal family ahead of a possible joint public appearance at the 2027 Invictus Games in Birmingham.
Last week, a spokesperson for Invictus appeared to hint that Harry was 'hoping' King Charles, Prince William and other royal family members will attend the 2027 games.
Harry helped set up Invictus in 2014 as an Olympics-style international sporting event for injured and wounded servicemen and women across the globe.
The first ever winter edition of the Invictus Games took place in Whistler and Vancouver in February this year and featured athletes from 23 different countries.
The next edition of the Invictus Games is set to take place in 2027 and will mark the event's return to Harry's native United Kingdom for the first time since the inaugural London games.
According to a source close to the Sussexes who spoke to Woman's Day, the Duke of Sussex now 'accepts' his family will never truly embrace his wife.
'(Harry) reluctantly accepts his family hate her so there's no sense involving her in peace talks because they'd turn him down flat if he were to try,' the source said.
'So Harry's new tactic is to do this solo. He's willing to fly to the UK, set up mediation meetings, whatever they'll agree to.'
According to the insider, Harry is prepared to meet with his father and brother without Markle if the royal family agrees to attend the Invictus Games.
'He's tried before, but the royals baulked because he insisted on bringing Meghan,' the source said.
'Now he's even offered to leave her at home for the Invictus Games if the royals agree to attend.'
While the royal family has supported Harry's signature organisation since its inception, no senior royals have appeared at any Invictus event since the Sussexes left royal duties five years ago.
The entire monarchy also noticeably snubbed a major service in London to celebrate a decade of Invictus at St Paul's Cathedral last year.
Instead, Harry was supported at the event by his uncle Earl Spencer and his aunt Lady Jane Fellowes from Princess Diana's side of the family.
Meanwhile, Harry's wife Meghan Markle still allegedly refuses to return to the UK without an apology from the monarchy for perceived mistreatment.
The comments come after fresh speculation the rift between Harry and King Charles is finally starting to thaw.
A fortnight ago, Harry's new chief communications officer, Meredith Maines, and UK-based PR rep Liam Maguire were photographed meeting with the King's top aide, Communications Secretary Tobyn Andreae, near Clarence House.
The meeting, first revealed by The Mail on Sunday, reportedly had "no formal agenda" but there were "things both sides wanted to talk about".
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‘It's a huge upset': Beating the USA in a relay is sweet. Australia's underdog swimmers just did it twice in 15 minutes
‘It's a huge upset': Beating the USA in a relay is sweet. Australia's underdog swimmers just did it twice in 15 minutes

Sydney Morning Herald

time22 minutes ago

  • Sydney Morning Herald

‘It's a huge upset': Beating the USA in a relay is sweet. Australia's underdog swimmers just did it twice in 15 minutes

There were nerves. Mollie O'Callaghan, tasked with the opening leg, fumbled her goggles on the blocks. No Cate Campbell. No Emma McKeon. No Shayna Jack. This was one of the least experienced quartets Australia had fielded in years, having won Olympic gold in 2012, 2016, 2021 and 2024. O'Callaghan (52.79), an individual 100m freestyle world champion in 2023, fired off a great first leg before Meg Harris (51.87 split) held the lead. From there, it was down to newcomers Milla Jansen and Wunsch — both highly rated but no one really knew if they really had it in them to propel Australia home. That they did as Jansen (52.89 split) kept Australia in front before Wunsch (53.05), channelling Ian Thorpe on Gary Hall Jr, surged past the USA's Torri Huske in the final strokes to secure gold in 3:30.60 — 0.44 seconds clear of the Americans. The Australian coaches' area erupted at the sight of a young team digging deep when it mattered. 'It was very daunting,' O'Callaghan said. 'All of us were quite nervous. I'm very confident in these girls.' Wunsch added: 'I just wanted to power home and give it all I had. And it's really exciting to be able to stand up with the gold medals.' The Americans declined to detail the impact of illness in their camp, but butterfly world record holder Gretchen Walsh withdrew an hour before the race. 'I don't really want to speak on how much it's affected us or who it's affected,' Huske said. 'But we've done a really good job staying resilient and staying positive.' The Australian men have often lived in the shadow of their female counterparts, despite winning the same event at the 2023 world titles in Fukuoka. This time, their task was even tougher on paper. At their staging camp in Darwin, Flynn Southam, Kai Taylor, Max Giuliani and Chalmers sat down to plot a path to victory. They knew it would take something special. They did it in 2023 at the world championships but had to settle for silver at last year's Olympics. Southam (47.77) set the tone before Taylor unleashed a sizzling 47.04 split in front of his mother, Australian Olympian Hayley Lewis, in the stands. Giuliani (47.63) got Australia into third, and then came Chalmers who delivered a devastating final split of 46.53 to motor the Dolphins home over a highly fancied American team. As Chalmers sliced through the water, his teammates smashed the starting blocks with their hands and willed the veteran to the wall. This was swimming theatre at its finest. Australia finished in 3:08.97, just 0.73 seconds outside the USA's world record from 2008. Italy (3:09.58) pipped the USA (3:09.64) for bronze. Then came even more celebrations, as Dean Boxall and head coach Rohan Taylor mobbed those around them in jubilant scenes. Australia weren't expected to come close but landed a 1-2 blow on their American rivals. 'The goal for us was just to give Kyle a puncher's shot,' Southam said. 'That was what we did. We all did our job extraordinarily well. 'The girls are so incredibly deep and strong, so we wanted to be part of that. We may not be the most talented on paper ... but we get in there and we have the underdog mentality. That was so awesome.' Loading Asked if he thought the USA were shocked by the result, Chalmers said: 'I think it's a huge upset and we prove that time and time again. Every year you read the articles and people write us off. 'We have a point to prove and swim with a chip on our shoulder a little bit, to be honest with you. 'It's not just about the US, but it was nice to get a hand on the wall first tonight and hear the Australian anthem is so special.' The Americans, meanwhile, were licking their wounds after failing to win a gold medal on night one — a rare sight for the swimming powerhouse, who last year also endured their worst Olympic gold haul in the pool since 1988. 'We're tough,' US swimmer Chris Guiliano said. 'We've got some dogs on this team.'

‘It's a huge upset': Beating the USA in a relay is sweet. Australia's underdog swimmers just did it twice in 15 minutes
‘It's a huge upset': Beating the USA in a relay is sweet. Australia's underdog swimmers just did it twice in 15 minutes

The Age

time22 minutes ago

  • The Age

‘It's a huge upset': Beating the USA in a relay is sweet. Australia's underdog swimmers just did it twice in 15 minutes

There were nerves. Mollie O'Callaghan, tasked with the opening leg, fumbled her goggles on the blocks. No Cate Campbell. No Emma McKeon. No Shayna Jack. This was one of the least experienced quartets Australia had fielded in years, having won Olympic gold in 2012, 2016, 2021 and 2024. O'Callaghan (52.79), an individual 100m freestyle world champion in 2023, fired off a great first leg before Meg Harris (51.87 split) held the lead. From there, it was down to newcomers Milla Jansen and Wunsch — both highly rated but no one really knew if they really had it in them to propel Australia home. That they did as Jansen (52.89 split) kept Australia in front before Wunsch (53.05), channelling Ian Thorpe on Gary Hall Jr, surged past the USA's Torri Huske in the final strokes to secure gold in 3:30.60 — 0.44 seconds clear of the Americans. The Australian coaches' area erupted at the sight of a young team digging deep when it mattered. 'It was very daunting,' O'Callaghan said. 'All of us were quite nervous. I'm very confident in these girls.' Wunsch added: 'I just wanted to power home and give it all I had. And it's really exciting to be able to stand up with the gold medals.' The Americans declined to detail the impact of illness in their camp, but butterfly world record holder Gretchen Walsh withdrew an hour before the race. 'I don't really want to speak on how much it's affected us or who it's affected,' Huske said. 'But we've done a really good job staying resilient and staying positive.' The Australian men have often lived in the shadow of their female counterparts, despite winning the same event at the 2023 world titles in Fukuoka. This time, their task was even tougher on paper. At their staging camp in Darwin, Flynn Southam, Kai Taylor, Max Giuliani and Chalmers sat down to plot a path to victory. They knew it would take something special. They did it in 2023 at the world championships but had to settle for silver at last year's Olympics. Southam (47.77) set the tone before Taylor unleashed a sizzling 47.04 split in front of his mother, Australian Olympian Hayley Lewis, in the stands. Giuliani (47.63) got Australia into third, and then came Chalmers who delivered a devastating final split of 46.53 to motor the Dolphins home over a highly fancied American team. As Chalmers sliced through the water, his teammates smashed the starting blocks with their hands and willed the veteran to the wall. This was swimming theatre at its finest. Australia finished in 3:08.97, just 0.73 seconds outside the USA's world record from 2008. Italy (3:09.58) pipped the USA (3:09.64) for bronze. Then came even more celebrations, as Dean Boxall and head coach Rohan Taylor mobbed those around them in jubilant scenes. Australia weren't expected to come close but landed a 1-2 blow on their American rivals. 'The goal for us was just to give Kyle a puncher's shot,' Southam said. 'That was what we did. We all did our job extraordinarily well. 'The girls are so incredibly deep and strong, so we wanted to be part of that. We may not be the most talented on paper ... but we get in there and we have the underdog mentality. That was so awesome.' Loading Asked if he thought the USA were shocked by the result, Chalmers said: 'I think it's a huge upset and we prove that time and time again. Every year you read the articles and people write us off. 'We have a point to prove and swim with a chip on our shoulder a little bit, to be honest with you. 'It's not just about the US, but it was nice to get a hand on the wall first tonight and hear the Australian anthem is so special.' The Americans, meanwhile, were licking their wounds after failing to win a gold medal on night one — a rare sight for the swimming powerhouse, who last year also endured their worst Olympic gold haul in the pool since 1988. 'We're tough,' US swimmer Chris Guiliano said. 'We've got some dogs on this team.'

Miss Austen
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ABC News

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Miss Austen

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