The Invictus Games, an international sporting competition hosted in London for over 300 wounded, injured and sick service personnel, was coming to a close, with Great Britain having secured the wheelchair basketball championship by defeating the USA. Adam Nixon, who captained Team GB, was celebrating his victory and enjoying the closing ceremony with his family and friends.
31-year-old Adam was a former gunner in 26 Regiment Royal Artillery and lost one of his legs following an IED explosion in Basra in Iraq in 2004. His left leg was amputated and his right leg badly damaged, confining him to a wheelchair.
Prince Harry had spent time with Team GB earlier in the day, congratulating the team on their big victory.
“Harry had spoken to us at the ceremony, just to say how proud he as of us guys,” Adam told DailyMail. “We were underdogs in the final but we beat the US at their own game.”
Adam was attending the ceremony with his wife, Taryn, and children Abigail, 11, Jayden, 8, Isabelle, 5, and three-year-old Lilyana.
At the closing ceremony, five-year-old Isabelle was getting upset that she could not see the stage, blocked in by other fans. Prince Harry had told the basketball team that he would be there to “chill out” and listen to the music, but swung into action upon recognizing Isabelle.
“He recognized her from earlier in the day and saw she was getting upset because she couldn’t see the band,” Adam said. “He approached us and smiled at me and just literally picked her up and just started to dance so she could see the stage.
“There was no calculation to it. He just recognized her from earlier and lifted her up on his shoulder so she could see. It was a bit of a whirlwind. It was very surreal.”
At first, Isabelle had no idea whose shoulders she was dancing on. It wasn’t until her mother, Taryn, told her that Isabelle realized what was happening.
“When she realized who it was, she was lost for words. She just danced along to the Foo Fighters with him and hasn’t stopped smiling since,” Adam said.
“Isabelle now says she’s a princess and tells all her friends she danced with ‘Uncle Harry,’” Taryn told DailyMail. “He was the perfect gentleman and made everyone’s day, especially Isabelle’s.”
“Harry just seems like one of the lads,” Adam said. “He is a real credit to himself. It is a lifelong memory for Isabelle. She will always remember it.”
In a statement, Kensington Palace said of the incident: “Prince Harry was keen to enjoy the closing concert and celebrate the Games with the competitors.
“The little girl’s father was the captain of the wheelchair basketball team, who Prince Harry met on several occasions throughout the course of the Games.”
“I was completely over the moon. I was chuffed to bits,” five-year-old Isabelle had to say of her brush with Prince Charming.
