Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
PRINCE Harry has compared himself to US President JFK and tried to speak German as he opens the Invictus Games without Meghan Markle.
Taking the stage in Dusseldorf, the 38-year-old Duke of Sussex took a new riff on President Kennedy’s famous speech in West Berlin in 1963 during the Cold War when he said ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’.
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Harry, instead told the packed audience “Ich bin ein Dusseldorfer” referring to the host city.
The Duke jetted to the Invictus Games without wife Meghan Markle who is set to arrive tomorrow.
And during his 10-minute address, Harry mentioned his wife only once when he celebrated her claim she had Nigerian descent.
Last year, Meg was mocked after she claimed on her Spotify podcast that she had taken a genealogy test which revealed she was 43 per cent Nigerian.
Harry’s comparison to assassinated President Kennedy comes as warring sibling Prince William used a famous JFK ‘moonshot’ speech about putting a man on the moon to inspire his £50million Earthshot Prize to save the planet.
Harry looked emotional and close to tears on stage after he received a 60 second standing ovation with cries of ‘Harry, Harry’.
He opened his address with a smattering of German words thanking Dusseldorf for hosting the games.
Since the last games in The Hague, in the Netherlands, in 2022, Harry has brought out his tell-all memoir Spare and six-part Netflix series and attended the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II and coronation of his father King Charles.
Harry told the crowd: “I don’t know about you but that last year went very fast, Ich bin ein Dusseldorfer.
“We went from stroopwafels to schnitzels in a blink of an eye.”
Last October, Meghan revealed that she discovered she is 43 per cent Nigerian after doing a genealogy test ‘a couple years ago’.
She made the startling revelation on an episode of her now-defunct Archetypes podcast on Spotify.
Harry told the crowd which included 500 competitors from 21 nations who had paraded into the Merkur Spiel-Arena at the opening ceremony that Nigeria had sent a team for the first time.
He said: “Now I’m not saying we play favourites in our home – but since my wife discovered she is of Nigerian descent it’s likely to get a little bit more competitive this year.
The prince added: “Remember you are not only watching and participating in sport bit experiencing the magic of the human spirit learning first hand from those who learn not bound by their journey but instead freed by it.”
The games, which also have a Ukrainian team, gives veterans of the armed forces a chance to compete in sports such as wheelchair rugby and swimming.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz delivered a pre-recorded statement.
Dusseldorf Mayor Dr Stephen Keller said: “Dear Duke your impact on the services and their communities van be under estimated.
“We owe you a great debt of gratitude.”
After the opening ceremony, Prince Harry grabbed a helicopter and flew 135 miles to appear on the German version of ‘Match of the Day’ to help promote the Invictus Games.
He was last night due to be a guest on a late-night footy show Das aktuelle Sportstudio, on German channel ZDF, in Mainz.
Harry earlier arrived to both cheers and jeers at Dusseldorf town hall where he was joined by Invictus dignitaries.
Outside the town hall a dozen protesters campaigned against staging the games.
They claim the Bundeswehr are exploiting Harry’s games to enlist young students into the armed forces.
A 68-year-old man from Dusseldorf, who refused to give his name, waved a homemade placard reading ‘Bomber Harry’.
The Duke of Sussex served two tours of Afghanistan and revealed in his memoir Spare that he killed 25 Taliban fighters.
The protester said he was comparing Harry to World War II Commander Arthur ‘Bomber’ Harris who was head of Bomber Command.
He said: “Afghanistan should be celebrated. This is rather cynical. Harry is just a puppet. He is a member of the British establishment.”
One protester even shouted out “murderer” as the prince walked the Invictus Games carpet.
Representatives from the 21 nations competing in the Invictus Games waited inside the town hall for his arrival.
Harry, 38, is staying in a 1,600 euro-a-night hotel in Dusseldorf for his week-long games.
He held a private vigil at the final resting place of Queen Elizabeth II at St George’s Chapel on Friday morning – on the anniversary of 12 months since her passing.
The chapel opened its doors early to Harry to enter for private reflection before tourists filed in at 10am.
Harry had been snubbed by the Royal Family from all private and public commemorations for the late Queen.
Meghan Markle, 42, remained in Montecito when Harry jetted back to pay tribute to his grandmother and attend a charity gala on Thursday.
She is expected to arrive in Dusseldorf tomorrow to join Harry at the Invictus Games.