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Brad Smeele

Former world champion wakeboarder and motivational speaker

Overview

Brad Smeele is a former world champion wakeboarder whose life changed in a single moment in July 2014, when a failed mid-air backflip at Florida's Lake Ronix shattered his C4 vertebrae and left him a quadriplegic at the age of 27. More than a decade on, Brad is one of New Zealand's most respected motivational speakers — known for an honesty about identity, depression and recovery that consistently leaves rooms quiet, thoughtful and changed.

Who is Brad Smeele? Before his accident, Brad was a 1.88m, 95kg professional wakeboarder, part-time model and former world junior champion living "an endless summer" of travel, competition and partying. His landmark mid-air double backflip won the sport's Trick of the Year. After his catastrophic injury he spent years in rehabilitation, depression and dark thoughts before slowly rebuilding his life. His 2022 memoir Owning It: The Ride That Changed My Life is a raw, bestselling account of that journey.

Career Highlights • Former world champion wakeboarder and world junior champion • Pioneered the double backflip ramp-to-ramp jump that won the sport's Trick of the Year • Bestselling author of Owning It: The Ride That Changed My Life (2022) • Has spoken at leadership summits, youth resilience programmes, and corporate wellbeing events across NZ and internationally • Took up adaptive freediving with support of champion freediver William Trubridge • Featured by RNZ, NZ Herald and major NZ media

Key Speaking Themes • Resilience, identity and rebuilding life after trauma • Mental health, dark thoughts and getting through • Gratitude, perspective and what really matters • Owning your story instead of running from it • Vulnerability and the strength in asking for help

What Your Audience Will Gain Brad is calm, candid and quietly powerful. Audiences leave with a fundamentally different perspective on their own challenges — and a clear sense that purpose, joy and courage are possible after almost anything.

Ideal For • Leadership summits and resilience programmes • Wellbeing and mental health events • Youth and school audiences (with age-appropriate framing) • Sales kick-offs and corporate offsites • Charity fundraisers and gala dinners

Frequently Asked Questions...

What does Brad Smeele speak about? Resilience, identity, mental health, gratitude and rebuilding life after a life-changing injury.

What happened to Brad Smeele? In July 2014 at Lake Ronix in Florida, Brad was filming a difficult double-rotation ramp-to-ramp jump he had pioneered when he crashed and shattered his C4 vertebra, becoming quadriplegic at the age of 27.

What is Brad Smeele's book? Owning It: The Ride That Changed My Life (2022) — a raw, bestselling memoir of his accident, recovery and what he has learned about himself since.

Is Brad Smeele suitable for school audiences? Yes, with appropriate framing. Brad has spoken at youth resilience programmes around New Zealand and is mindful of age-appropriate content.

Where is Brad Smeele based? Auckland, where he lives with his younger brother and a small team of carers.
Is Brad Smeele available for keynotes and panels? Yes. Brad delivers keynotes, leadership talks and mentoring across NZ and internationally on resilience and mental wellbeing.

MENTAL HEALTH & WELLBEING | MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS | SPORT SPEAKERS | RESILIENCE SPEAKERS | HIGH PERFORMANCE SPEAKERS

Brad Smeele

Former world champion wakeboarder and motivational speaker

Overview

Brad Smeele is a former world champion wakeboarder whose life changed in a single moment in July 2014, when a failed mid-air backflip at Florida's Lake Ronix shattered his C4 vertebrae and left him a quadriplegic at the age of 27. More than a decade on, Brad is one of New Zealand's most respected motivational speakers — known for an honesty about identity, depression and recovery that consistently leaves rooms quiet, thoughtful and changed.

Who is Brad Smeele? Before his accident, Brad was a 1.88m, 95kg professional wakeboarder, part-time model and former world junior champion living "an endless summer" of travel, competition and partying. His landmark mid-air double backflip won the sport's Trick of the Year. After his catastrophic injury he spent years in rehabilitation, depression and dark thoughts before slowly rebuilding his life. His 2022 memoir Owning It: The Ride That Changed My Life is a raw, bestselling account of that journey.

Career Highlights • Former world champion wakeboarder and world junior champion • Pioneered the double backflip ramp-to-ramp jump that won the sport's Trick of the Year • Bestselling author of Owning It: The Ride That Changed My Life (2022) • Has spoken at leadership summits, youth resilience programmes, and corporate wellbeing events across NZ and internationally • Took up adaptive freediving with support of champion freediver William Trubridge • Featured by RNZ, NZ Herald and major NZ media

Key Speaking Themes • Resilience, identity and rebuilding life after trauma • Mental health, dark thoughts and getting through • Gratitude, perspective and what really matters • Owning your story instead of running from it • Vulnerability and the strength in asking for help

What Your Audience Will Gain Brad is calm, candid and quietly powerful. Audiences leave with a fundamentally different perspective on their own challenges — and a clear sense that purpose, joy and courage are possible after almost anything.

Ideal For • Leadership summits and resilience programmes • Wellbeing and mental health events • Youth and school audiences (with age-appropriate framing) • Sales kick-offs and corporate offsites • Charity fundraisers and gala dinners

Frequently Asked Questions...

What does Brad Smeele speak about? Resilience, identity, mental health, gratitude and rebuilding life after a life-changing injury.

What happened to Brad Smeele? In July 2014 at Lake Ronix in Florida, Brad was filming a difficult double-rotation ramp-to-ramp jump he had pioneered when he crashed and shattered his C4 vertebra, becoming quadriplegic at the age of 27.

What is Brad Smeele's book? Owning It: The Ride That Changed My Life (2022) — a raw, bestselling memoir of his accident, recovery and what he has learned about himself since.

Is Brad Smeele suitable for school audiences? Yes, with appropriate framing. Brad has spoken at youth resilience programmes around New Zealand and is mindful of age-appropriate content.

Where is Brad Smeele based? Auckland, where he lives with his younger brother and a small team of carers.
Is Brad Smeele available for keynotes and panels? Yes. Brad delivers keynotes, leadership talks and mentoring across NZ and internationally on resilience and mental wellbeing.

Testimonials

"A great storyteller that had the audience glued to every word. The day was a huge success and Brad sharing his experiences and the knowledge was a crowd favourite and the highlight."

Neil Jackson - Head of Auckland Sales – New Zealand Media and Entertainment

"Brad is able to create a special and unique atmosphere when speaking. He has the ability to develop a very open, honest and safe environment when communicating with others. This ability allows Brad to engage with his audience on a very deep emotional level, influencing, inspiring and motivating those in attendance in a way like no other."

Brad Davis - INFINZ Young Finance Professions, Auckland Chair of the Board

"Brad is a very accomplished and entertaining speaker who spoke to our students with a specific message for their age and stage in their lives. His speech inspired our boys to challenge themselves in the future, to live their lives by three core attributes through attitude, effort and action."

Grayson Aspinall - B.Ed, Dip Tchg Deputy Principal