Team Netherlands win gold in Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge at the Invictus Games Toronto 2017
- Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge kicks off Invictus Games Toronto 2017
- Invictus Games competitors inspired by motivational visit from Prince Harry as they prepared for final heat of Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge
- Patron of the Invictus Games Foundation, Prince Harry also presented the first gold and silver medals to Netherlands and Great Britain
- Teams from 13 nations tackled specialist courses in Jaguar F-TYPE SVR and Land Rover Discovery
- This year's Invictus Games in Toronto, Canada, run from 23-30 September
Toronto, Canada, 25 September 2017: Invictus Games Toronto 2017 competitors from Germany were greeted by Prince Harry as they contended for gold and silver medals at the Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge today.
The Prince joined finalists at the specially-constructed driving course as they competed for the first medals of the Games in Canada.
Teams from 13 nations tackled the off-road and agility driving challenge, which tested their communication, team-work and strategic skills in two time-trials in both a Land Rover Discovery and Jaguar F-TYPE SVR.
The Jaguar F-TYPE guarantees speed and handling precision for the tough slalom challenge course featuring 'Jaguar Smart Cones' to create an unpredictable, constantly-changing track layout to increase driver difficulty.
The Land Rover Discovery is also used on a daunting urban off-road driving course with tracks designed to test both driving and navigational skills.
Prince Harry awarded medals to the top finishers, with the team from Netherlands taking gold, Great Britain finishing second, and Denmark claiming bronze.
Billed as the world biggest international adaptive sporting event for wounded, ill and injured servicemen, servicewomen and veterans, the Invictus Games Toronto 2017 presented by Jaguar Land Rover includes archery, athletics, cycling, indoor rowing, powerlifting, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, wheelchair tennis, and, for 2017, golf.
Gareth Paterson, competitor from Team Great Britain who won silver medal said: "The Invictus Games is a huge help for ex-military who are wounded, injured and sick. They may lose faith in themselves and all motivation, but the Games proves that no matter how many times you get knocked down, you get back up and can even be better than you thought you were. And now we are standing here with the first UK medals at the Invictus Games 2017."
Dr Ralf Speth, Jaguar Land Rover CEO, said:
"Once again we have watched the sheer dedication and commitment of these competitors in the Driving Challenge. We celebrate each and every one of them and everyone around them who played a part in their journey here today: friends, loved ones, family members, professionals. I know everyone at Jaguar Land Rover wishes each of them the very best of luck for the rest of the Games. Everyone is a winner here in Toronto."
The Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge is the first medal opportunity of the Invictus Games before the opening ceremony on 23 September.
Jaguar Land Rover has also recently announced its continued support as Presenting Partner of Invictus Games Sydney 2018.
To learn more about the Invictus Games Toronto 2017, visit: http://www.invictusgames2017.com/
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About Jaguar Land Rover
Jaguar Land Rover is the UK's largest automotive manufacturer, built around two iconic British car brands: Land Rover, the world's leading manufacturer of premium all-wheel-drive vehicles; and Jaguar, one of the world's premier luxury sports saloon and sports car marques.
We employ almost 42,000 people globally and support around 240,000 more through our dealerships, suppliers and local businesses. Manufacturing is centred in the UK, with additional plants in China, Brazil, India and Slovakia.
At Jaguar Land Rover we are driven by a desire to create class-leading products that deliver great customer experiences. The largest investor in R&D in the UK manufacturing sector, we have invested £16 billion in the last seven years and in the current year alone will spend over £4 billion on new product creation and capital expenditure. In 2016 Jaguar Land Rover sold more than 583,000 vehicles in 136 countries, with more than 80 per cent of our vehicles produced in the UK being sold abroad.