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Prince Harry meets king of Netherlands and pays visit to Irish pub

The Duke also announced the location of the next Invictus Games

Joanna Whitehead
Friday 22 April 2022 17:01 BST
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Prince Harry watches the wheelchair basketball final with King Willem-Alexander (centre) and Dutch General Mart de Kruif on Friday 22 April
Prince Harry watches the wheelchair basketball final with King Willem-Alexander (centre) and Dutch General Mart de Kruif on Friday 22 April (ANP/AFP via Getty Images)

Prince Harry met with King Willem-Alexander, the king of the Netherlands, on Friday, the final day of the Invictus Games.

The pair watched the final of the wheelchair basketball match between the USA and the Netherlands, laughing and chatting amongst the packed crowd.

Earlier today, Prince Harry announced that the Invictus Games will next take place in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada, in 2025.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Invictus is heading back to North America and this is a very, very good thing,” he said.

“As Invictus continues to adapt and evolve, I’m thrilled to announce that the Invictus Games Foundation has selected Canada to host the first ever winter hybrid games in 2025.

“And will be featuring brand new sports as always, the Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025 will offer a global platform to expand the range and profile of winter adaptive sports.”

And on Thursday evening, the Prince turned down tequila shots in favour of a quiet pint of Guinness at an Irish bar.

The Duke of Sussex visited O’Casey’s Irish bar in The Hague on Thursday evening accompanied by about a dozen people.

Pub owner John Gulay, 51, said Harry had a single pint of Guinness before switching to lemonade.

“He loves Guinness,” Mr Gulay told the PA news agency, adding: “He loves the Guinness, of course, who doesn't?”

According to Mr Gulay, Prince Harry said “One pint, that's it” and “I [will] stick to one pint and then I'll move to lemonade”.

Mr Gulay said the Duke was offered tequila shots but turned them down, and suggested they instead be given to other people in the pub.

Harry stayed in the pub’s beer garden for around 90 minutes before leaving for dinner elsewhere, he said.

Mr Gulay said he did not send a bill to Harry's table.

“I said 'Do you know what? This bar bill is mine. I'm so honoured to have you over',” he said.

“They offered to pay, but I said I'm really happy that you guys were here and the Invictus Games were so good for the pub this week,” he said.

Mr Gulay added that Harry was a “really nice guy”.

The Invictus Games closing ceremony will take place in The Hague on Friday night.

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