Invictus Games a life highlight for Ostrander’s Jeremy Janssens

Master Corporal Jeremy Janssens competing in the Invictus Games 50-metre breast-stroke. (Contributed Photo)

Jeff Tribe, Post Correspondent

Part rock concert, part camaraderie, part competition, Master Corporal Jeremy Janssens’ 2025 Invictus Games experience proved every bit an enjoyable life experience.

“Basically, it was like the Olympics,” summed up the Ostrander native.

Janssens grew up just outside the small community, working in his father’s landscaping business. He was attracted to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) via a recruiting fair, a self-described ‘air nut’ hoping to quality as a helicopter pilot, before embracing a career as a procurement specialist within the supply services. Ultimately attached to the 1 Canadian Field Hospital, a deployable medical unit, his job is to ensure the smooth transfer of goods to where they are needed at the front line.

“If you watch M.A.S.H., I’m Radar,” he laughed. “How fast do you need it and where do you want it?

“Anything from beans to bullets, as we say.”

Based out of Pettawawa, Janssen’s service record also includes two nine-month tours of duty with Canadian Forces in Afghanistan, based adjacent to the runway in Kandahar. Constantly under fire from Taliban rocket and small-arms fire, his secondary duties included stretcher bearer for seriously-wounded casualties on incoming Black Hawk helicopters, picking them up and running them into the hospital ER. Janssens also stretchered patients to bunkers when the unit came under fire, cleaning up post-operation spaces and incinerating associated materials. He was also active in weekend ‘hearts and minds’ exercises, essentially the unit offering services to local residents.

“We even looked after the Canadian forces dogs,” Janssens said of an attached veterinary service.

His tours were ‘his best and worst’ of times, the adrenalin ‘high’ of constant meaningful service, quite literally life-and-death scenarios. There was always something going on, constant flights, fighter jets, choppers, cargo transport planes and drones landing or taking off from the runway, a wide range of fascinating military ‘kit.’

“A little kid’s dream, right?” said Janssens.

However, there was also what he describes as ‘The sheer inhumanity of what people are willing to do to each other over a piece of land.’

“I’ve seen it all,” said Janssens, wide-ranging observations including horrifically-wounded soldiers and civilians, the latter a thing keeping him up at night.

“They weren’t meant to be in the battlefield.”

He found the inability to save everyone challenging, participating in his share of ‘ramp ceremonies’, loading fallen soldiers for transport home to their final resting place. Despite the 24/7 danger in Afghanistan, constant activity left less time to dwell on things, and it was a combination of always being busy, and having people there to talk to, while there.

“The alarm goes off and it’s ‘go, go, go,’” Janssens summed up. “It didn’t really hit me until I got home and it was quiet.”

Military personnel coming off active duty receive a decompression period at a resort-like location, have classes supporting their transition and also ongoing physical and mental health support mechanisms.

“Turn your battle brain off and be human again,” Janssens explained, happy to report he is, “Better than I was.”

However, he was subsequently diagnosed with terminal cancer, attributed to exposure suffered during his tours of duty.

“I’ve beat cancer twice,” said Janssens, who happily in remission, was cleared for a return to active duty at the CAF training base in Meaford.

His application to the 2025 Invictus Games was successful, due to the service-related health issues he has experienced.

The Games were first held in London in 2014, founder and patron Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, envisioning them as recovery and rehabilitation for international wounded and sick service personnel through sport. Prince Harry served as an Apache helicopter pilot on the front lines in Afghanistan.

“He understands what the troops went through because he went through it,” said Janssens.

His Invictus experience began January, 2024 with a camp based in Vancouver where athletes were able to meet their teammates and try out and indicate their preferred sports. Six months later a second event in Kingston saw them train as a team, with a third training camp held on-site in British Columbia in January of this year, three weeks prior to the games themselves.

“From that first training camp I was training six days a week,” said Janssens, whose high school swimming experience at Woodstock St. Mary’s led to individual 50-metre freestyle and breast-stroke events. He also joined the sitting volleyball team, reflecting the high number of lower-body injuries suffered by soldiers.

“To make it fair, everyone sits on the ground,” said Janssens.

The 2025 Games ran from February 6th to 18th, the first event to host both winter and summer events. Opening ceremonies were viewed by a 42,000-member sold-out crowd at B.C. Place, featuring a speech from Prince Harry and concerts from Cold Play, who did the Invictus theme song, and a surprise guest appearance by Katy Perry.

Entering with his teammates as part of the 23 participating nations’ parade of athletes will remain a highlight.

“It was pretty amazing to walk in and hear the whole stadium cheering for Canada.”

Athletes and their families - courtesy of Canadian Tire, each member could have six supporters attend - were treated exceptionally well, said Janssens, from Team Canada apparel and gear through accommodating specialized dietary requirements. Athletes stayed at one Whistler hotel, supporters at another, shuttled to and from venues.

Swimming events were contested at the University of British Columbia’s 50-metre pool, a beautiful facility with Janssens’ parents, girlfriend and their children seated close to the water during competition.

Janssens finished second in both of his heats, finishing up ranked 11th out of 256 swimmers.

Team Canada’s opening volleyball match was against Australia, ending in a narrow defeat. Janssens and company faced the British next, who lived up to their reputation for excellence.

“Team UK was pretty strong,” Janssens conceded. “But we had fun. Everybody was cheering everyone on.”

He returned home and back to work buoyed his Invictus Games experience, both competition and camaraderie, being able to share it with his family, and a load of Team Canada memorabilia along with Team Australia and Team UK jerseys swapped for at the conclusion of their volleyball matches.

“Everyone wanted Team Canada stuff,” he explained.

In conclusion, Janssens is hard-pressed to single out a single memory from what essentially amounted to his Olympics.

“I would say it was the whole experience. It definitely was a highlight of my life.”