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Olympians, Execs To Greet Prince Harry In Colorado

SEDALIA, Colo. (AP) — Britain's Prince Harry will mingle with Olympians including Missy Franklin as well as British business executives, students and military officers living in Colorado before cheering on wounded servicemen and women at the Warrior Games on Saturday.

Harry was scheduled to attend a cocktail reception Friday at the Sanctuary Golf Course south of Denver before heading to Colorado Springs for the games. More than 200 wounded servicemen and women from the U.S. and Britain will participate.

The visit is part of a week long visit to the United States that started in Washington and will also include trips to parts of New Jersey damaged by Superstorm Sandy. He'll end his trip by playing in the Sentebale Polo Cup match in Greenwich, Conn.

It's Harry's first official visit to Colorado, but he's been a tourist here before. He last visited the state in 1995 for a rafting trip with his brother and mother but has also been here to ski before.

The guest list at the Colorado reception included John Minge, president of BP America, British ambassador Sir Peter Westmacott and Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper. Besides Franklin, who is celebrating her 18th birthday, other Olympians included Curt Tomaseviz and swimmer Jessica Long.

Harry recently spent 20 weeks in Afghanistan as co-pilot gunner on an Apache attack helicopter and has been a big supporter of charities to help wounded service members.

On Saturday he'll attend the opening ceremonies for the Warrior Games at the Olympic Training Center. That event is closed to the public but spectators are welcome to attend the event competitions, which are free, starting Sunday. Harry is scheduled to attend Sunday's public cycling event, which starts at 12:30 p.m. Air Force Academy.

He comes to Colorado after a somber day in Washington. He saluted America's war dead at Arlington National Cemetery and visited wounded soldiers at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

He plans another outing with wounded military personnel later this year when he participates in the South Pole Allied Challenge. Teams from Britain, Australia, Britain, Canada and the United States will race 208 miles to the pole.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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