Prince Harry & Meghan Markle cheer on Invictus Games hopefuls in Bath

Today marked the Prince Harry and Ms Markle's first visit to the West Country as a couple. Credit: Team Bath / University of Bath

Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle made their first visit as a couple to the West Country today.

They visited the University of Bath's Sports Training Village to cheer on Invictus Games hopefuls.

Hundreds of athletes took part in the trials with the aim of joining the 72-member strong UK Team.

The Invictus Games was founded by the Prince in 2014. It is an international sporting event for injured serving and veteran servicepeople.

This year, it is set to take place in Sydney, Australia.

More than 400 athletes are competing for a place, with 45% of them never having applied for an Invictus Games before.

Among the athletes the couple spoke to was Army veteran Kelly Ganfield. She is visually impaired after suffering two strokes due to a rare blood condition. Prince Harry and Ms Markle tried on her pair of special glasses that illustrate just how restricted her vision is.

Ms Meghan Markle tried on special glasses illustrating Kelly Ganfield's visual impairment. Credit: Team Bath / University of Bath
Prince Harry recognised and chatted to a few of this year's hopefuls. Credit: Team Bath / University of Bath

The UK Team Trials are run by Help For Heroes with support from the Ministry of Defence, The Royal British Legion and the Endeavour Fund.

They will take place until Sunday.

  • Prince Harry's visit to the 2018 Invictus Games trials meant a lot to many of the athletes: