
Aaron Phipps
Paralympic Champion: Led Team GB to its first-ever wheelchair rugby gold at Tokyo 2020. Mount Kilimanjaro Ascent: First person to summit Kilimanjaro unassisted, climbing on hands and knees. Advocate and Influencer: Named among the UK’s top 100 most influential disabled people, inspiring through speaking, and fundraising.
Aaron Phipps's videos
What Aaron Phipps's clients say
"Aaron is an accomplished speaker and I would recommend him as a motivational speaker for any event. He is very humble, entertaining and generated a good combination of laughs and empathy from our delegates on the day."
"Aaron ran an exceptional session for our VIP client event. He was the first speaker of the day and his presentation was pitched perfectly: moving, funny, thought provoking and thoroughly up-lifting. He had everyone in the room hanging on his every word from the get-go, ensuring our event had the maximum impact from the very start. (Which isn’t always the case as sometimes these take a while to get into full swing). This allowed the rest of the day to carry on with the momentum he built and the audience were fully engaged, ready for the following presentations and speakers. Aaron really set us up for success and the direct feedback after the event has been exceptional. "
"It’s a rare and exciting thing to meet a person who can make you rethink your approach to life but Aaron did just that. He kept a diverse audience of Telco Execs hanging on his every word with his balance of brutal honesty, humour and authenticity. Aaron’s unique story is interesting in its own right but add in his skills of audience engagement and you’ve got an incredible motivational speaker and presenter. Can not recommend highly enough!"
"An audience of 550 did not un-nerve Aaron as he told his life story with a few action shots of the wheelchair rugby (repeated) to add to the excitement! This is a heartfelt story of targets and achievements with plenty of opportunity for Aaron to poke fun at himself along the way. Aaron was happy to mingle with the guests at the afters bar which was a welcome bonus, but alas no drinking for Aaron as heading off to the England training camp. Certainly one of our best speakers at this annual event!"
"Something rather exceptional has occurred when people are still talking about Aaron Phipps a month after meeting him, including me! It was a pleasure to meet Aaron and there are few occasions when it is possible to be so informed and entertained in such a thought provoking way as this one did. Aaron’s talk was moving, inspiring and humorous and we’d like to send another huge thank you for making it such a memorable event for everyone who came."
"Everyone LOVED your talk, they were all coming up to me last week saying you were the best speaker they’ve ever had, how inspirational it was, how incredible your story is and how they’d love to hear from you again! A resounding thumbs up from everyone"
"You stole the show! For me and many others you were the highlight of the entire event! I wanted to e-mail to thank you for your significant contribution to our Conference this year. You had me and the rest of the audience captivated from start to finish and everyone left on such a high. The wheelchair racing seemed to go down well too. Thank you so much for bringing our Conference to life."
"Thank you so much for yesterday’s session, truly inspirational, and an absolute highlight of our two weeks of Leading Live events – thank you."
"After seeing Aaron’s presentation for the first time, I commissioned him to deliver it to our senior managers. It’s a great story, brilliantly told, which really raised the bar in inspiring and resonating with my department colleagues. Aaron’s story effortlessly tackled big transformational themes such as resilience, motivation, performance, seeking opportunities through change, teamwork, and work-life balance, in a way that standard tired PowerPoint presentations could never do."
"I had the fantastic opportunity to hear Aaron’s story and whilst his experiences were really emotive and moved me to tears, I walked away feeling hugely inspired and empowered, to do more to create an inclusive society and be braver in my own life. It is very difficult to achieve sharing a heart-breaking story and to keep the audience feeling motivated and positive, which Aaron did flawlessly. I attended with several colleagues, who shared the same and immediately knew we wanted to work with him in the future to support our own inclusion journey. Thank you again Aaron, you really made an amazing impression and we all are trying to do the thing that scares us because of you!"
"I was hooked on your every word. The way you connected with your audience, and told your story was so impactful and engaging. The determination and resilience you showed through your journey is something we can all learn from and truly does challenge the ‘dis’ in ‘disabled’."
"The feedback from the day was that is was the best AGM we have ever had – and you played a huge role in this."
"The best talk I have ever heard in my life from Aaron Phipps. It was an emotional roller coaster oozing with inspiration."
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- English
Aaron Phipps's 2025 biography
Aaron Phipps: Paralympian and Gold Medal Winning Champion
Aaron Phipps, MBE, is a Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby athlete, three times Paralympian and gold medal winning champion. At 15 Aaron had both of his legs and most of his fingers amputated due to blood poisoning from meningitis. After a 10km fundraising wheelchair race for the Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF), Aaron’s sporting journey began. Starting with wheelchair racing, Aaron competed in two London Marathons, including 2009 where he came fourth, finishing in under two hours. Aaron joined the GB Wheelchair Rugby squad and was selected for the 2012 London Paralympic Games where he scored over half of his team’s points.
In 2016 Aaron decided to climb Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds for both MRF and Shaw Trust, with a specially adapted off-road wheelchair. However, when the wheelchair wasn’t working on the terrain, Aaron refused to be carried and reached the summit after four days of trekking on his hands and knees. It’s the first time an amputee has reached the top of Kilimanjaro without any assistance. The story made national headlines and has been the subject of a Channel 5 documentary.
Aaron returned to Wheelchair Rugby in 2017. Against all the odds his team went from being 5th in the world, to the best on the planet, in the middle of a global pandemic. It was the first European team to win a medal in wheelchair rugby and Paralympics GB’s first ever gold medal in a team sport.
He continued to the Paris 2024 games and achieved his dream of getting his family to watch him compete.
He has been voted in the top 100 most influential people in the UK with a disability.
Articles and podcasts
Aaron Phipps's 2025 talks & topics
Blood, Sweat and Wheelchairs
Aaron contracted Meningitis aged 15. He was rushed into hospital and placed on life support with a 20% chance of survival. His legs and fingers had to be amputated due to septicaemia and he spent a year in hospital
Key Takeaways
- How to re-envision your future when your circumstances change
- How to handle and recover from major setbacks
- How to manage your mindset every day to stay focussed and positive
- Perspective on life and our personal vulnerabilities
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough
Aaron took on a charity challenge in 2016. To become the first wheelchair user to scale Kilimanjaro unaided. When his wheelchair couldn’t cope, he was told that he would have to be carried. He refused and crawled on his hands and knees for four days to reach the summit.
Key takeaways
- An inspirational tale of resilience and determination
- How to not give up even in the face of adversity
Path to Gold
The journey to achieving that defied expectations. Sharing the secrets of an elite partnership in the build up to an unprecedented Paralympic gold medal.
- Delivered alongside Aaron’s performance coach, Jon Cooper
- Duration: 20 – 50mins (Keynote) or 2 hours – Half day (Workshop)
- Suitable for senior management / specific teams