Richard Harris

Hero who led the rescue of 12 boys trapped in a Thai cave

Dr. Richard "Harry" Harris works in anesthesia and aeromedical retrieval medicine in Adelaide, South Australia. He is notable for his efforts in leading the rescue of a soccer team of 12 boys and their coach in the Thailand’s Tham Luang cave in 2018. In 2019, Harry was awarded Australian of the Year for his heroic efforts.

"A Humble Hero"Citation

Topics

Resilience
Troubleshooting
How to Focus on Goals No Matter the Odds
Motivation & Inspiration
Adventure & Exploration

Languages

He presents in English.

How he presents

A humble hero who provides captivating keynotes to a variety of corporate audiences. Richard will customise his speech to suit his audience.

Talk to us about Richard Harris

In Detail

Harry has a professional and voluntary interest in search and rescue operations, establishing the first sump rescue training course in Australasia. By building relationships with emergency services in Australia, he has been preparing for an event like the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue, which presented an opportunity to put this training to work. Harry has expertise in diving, wilderness and remote area health. His passion for cave diving goes back to the 1980’s and has taken him to the corners of the globe in search of new adventures. Among their many dives, Harry and the Wet Mules have explored some of the world’s deepest caves, including the Pearse Resurgence in New Zealand to 229m depth, Daxing Spring in China to 213m and Song Hong Cave in Thailand to 196m.

What he offers you

Richard offers insights into the rescue mission in Thailand and teaches audiences around the world the importance of resilience, troubleshooting and shows them how to focus on a goal no matter the odds.