MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS | SPORT SPEAKERS

Mark Inglis

Paralympian, Everest Summiteer & Resilience Authority

Mark Inglis ONZM is one of New Zealand's most respected adventurers and motivational speakers. The first double amputee in the world to summit Mount Everest, his message — "attitude determines your altitude" — has resonated with audiences from boardrooms to schools across NZ, Australia and beyond.

Who is Mark Inglis?

Mark grew up in Geraldine, South Canterbury, and began work as a search-and-rescue mountaineer at Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park in 1979. In November 1982, he and climbing partner Phil Doole were trapped in an ice cave on Mt Cook for 13 days during a brutal blizzard. Both lost their legs below the knee to frostbite. Mark was 23.

Career Highlights

  • First double amputee to summit Mount Everest (15 May 2006)

  • First double amputee to summit an 8,000m peak — Cho Oyu (2004)

  • Silver medal, Mixed 1000m Time Trial LC3, Sydney 2000 Paralympics

  • BSc (Hons) in Human Biochemistry, Lincoln University, and research scientist at Christchurch School of Medicine

  • Senior Winemaker at Montana Wines for a decade

  • Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (2002)

  • Founder and CEO of the Limbs4All Charitable Trust

  • Author of five books, including No Mean Feat and Legs on Everest

Key Speaking Themes

  • Resilience, attitude and the "Optimalist" mindset

  • Overcoming adversity and reinventing yourself

  • Goal-setting and the power of incremental progress

  • Leadership, decision-making and risk in extreme environments

  • Disability, accessibility and inclusion

What Your Audience Will Gain

A genuinely powerful keynote from a man who has rebuilt his life — and reached the top of the world — from a position most would call hopeless. Mark's story is both grand and grounded, full of practical lessons on goal-setting, team trust and the small daily choices that compound into extraordinary outcomes.

Ideal For

  • Leadership and high-performance conferences

  • Resilience, wellbeing and mental health events

  • Sales conferences and after-dinner keynotes

  • Disability and accessibility events

  • Schools, universities and emerging-leader programmes

Frequently Asked Questions about Mark Inglis

What does Mark Inglis speak about? Resilience, attitude, goal-setting, leadership in extreme environments and the journey from amputee to Everest summiteer.

What is Mark Inglis best known for? Being the first double amputee in the world to summit Mt Everest, on 15 May 2006.

How did Mark Inglis lose his legs? In November 1982, trapped for 13 days in an ice cave near the summit of Aoraki/Mt Cook during a blizzard. Both legs were amputated below the knee due to frostbite.

Has Mark Inglis won a Paralympic medal? Yes — silver in the Mixed 1000m Time Trial LC3 at the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games, NZ's first ever Para cycling medal.

What is Limbs4All? A charitable trust Mark founded that provides prosthetics and support to people with limb loss in developing countries.

Is Mark Inglis available for keynotes in NZ and overseas? Yes. Mark speaks regularly to audiences from small leadership groups through to crowds of 1,400-plus.