Owning It

Brad Smeele's thrill-seeking, fast-paced life as a professional wakeboarder came to an abrupt halt when an accident caused him to become a quadriplegic.

Wakeboarding is like waterskiing, but on a single board with aerial tricks added in. It's a freestyle sport for super-athletic adrenalin junkies. Brad was at the peak of his career, pushing the sport to new heights and perfecting tricks that no one else could achieve. He was also a sought-after model and relished his free-wheeling lifestyle.

But in July 2014, while practising his latest trick, he landed badly. Catastrophically, in fact. He landed on his neck, completely crushing his spinal cord and becoming a quadriplegic immediately.

For someone whose whole life was built around his physical prowess, this was completely and utterly devastating.

Brad has had to work through a great deal, from being an incredibly physical person in all senses of the word to being someone with very limited use of his body. The struggle has been monumental, but he's come to a place of acceptance.

In Owning It, he shares his epic story and the lessons he has learnt from an unexpected teacher. He now brings the same focus and determination he brought to his wakeboarding career to inspiring others.