
Ade Adepitan
An inspirational athlete, Ade Adepitan MBE has won five Paralympic gold medals and has helped to teach a generation of young people that disability should not stand in the way of ambition. Now a successful television personality and actor, Adepitan was a London 2012 Olympic ambassador and has commentated on coverage of the Paralympic Games in both Beijing and London.
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Ade Adepitan's 2025 biography
Known for his Paralympic sporting achievements, Ade Adepitan’s positive attitude is also key to his success as a TV presenter and speaker.
A truly motivational speaker, Adepitan has worked with multinational companies and international charities, sharing his inspirational story and encouraging excellence in all aspects of life.
Ade Adepitan’s Career
Enthusiasm, dedication and willpower allowed Ade Adepitan to achieve not only his goal of becoming a top wheelchair basketball player, but also saw him become a Paralympic gold medalist and a much loved TV personality. As a speaker, he shares his inspiring tales and teaches his audience how to overcome both psychological and physical boundaries to success.
A survivor of childhood polio, Adedoyin Adepitan (Ade to family, friends and fans) has gone on to become a highly successful wheelchair sportsmen. The winner of five Paralympic gold medals – three in wheelchair basketball (2004, 2008 and 2012), one in wheelchair tennis (2008) and one in dance (2012) – he has not allowed losing the use of his left leg to deter him from following his ambition and reaching peak physical performance. Still a keen sportsman, Adepitan completed the London Marathon in 2007 and currently concentrates on wheelchair tennis. Now a successful TV presenter and actor, he is also involved in a number of charities and seeks to promote equality for people with disabilities the world over.
A gift for communication, unique humour and an insight into sport, disability and culture have led Adepitan to become a successful television presenter and actor. His sense of fun has seen him work on children’s programmes such as Xchange and Desperados and he has also appeared in serious documentaries such as Britain on Benefits (part of the Channel 4 Dispatches series) and ‘Cuba, Basketball and Betrayal’ (part of Channel 4s Unreported World series). Just some of the other TV shows Adepitan has appeared in include Eastenders, Holiday, Casualty ( all BBC1), Hardware (ITV1) and Tiger Tiger (Channel 5) and Beyond Boundaries, a BBC 2 series in which he travelled through rainforests, deserts and mountain regions of Nicaragua, demonstrating that those with disabilities truly can achieve their dreams (BBC 1). He also featured as the lead dancer in a 2002 BBC 1 ident.
His expert knowledge has seen Adepitan present numerous competitions in both basketball and other sports. Frequent appearances on Channel 5s NBA coverage and his work for ITV on events such as The Boat Show and the BBCs Grandstand have helped to enhance his reputation and helped him to secure his role as a top Paralympic Games commentator.
Adepitan is an exceptional speaker for the same reasons that he is an exceptional presenter; he has an ability to connect with his audience and to understand their needs.
As well as working with charities such as the NSPCC, he has spoken for some of the UKs largest companies, including BT, BUPA, Lloyds TSB and Royal Mail. As Olympic ambassador he spoke alongside Tony Blair and in 2005 he and Stephen Fry performed a poem examining the fate of disabled children at Westminster Abbeys Holocaust Memorial.
Current & Past Roles & Positions
- TV presenter
- Wheelchair basketball and tennis player
- Paralympic gold medalist
Awards, Accolades, Achievements, Honours
- Former Ambassador – London 2012 Olympic bid
- Lifetime Achievement Award – University of East London (2010)
- Honorary Doctorate – University of East London (2010)
- Honorary Doctorate – Loughborough University (2006)
- MBE (2005)
- Ambassador – NSPCC
- Patron – The Association of Wheelchair Children
- Patron – Scope