A Queensland boy, it’s not surprising that sailor Daniel Fitzgibbon feels at one with the water. At 32 years of age, he has raced sailboats his entire life and continues to do so, despite a sailing accident that left him a quadriplegic.

After his accident, Daniel returned to his passion and won the 2004 Disabled Sailing World Championship in his class, showing his drive and determination to succeed. He went on to be named the 2004 Australian Sailor of the Year with a Disability and the 2004 Queensland Sailor of the Year.

Daniel’s dream of winning Paralympic medals came true in Beijing where he and partner Rachael Cox won silver in the SKUD-18 two person keelboat event. He is extremely happy with the result and feels years of hard work and relentlessly travelling around the world to compete were paid off. Daniel was surprised by the amount of local support at his first Paralympic Games and aims to compete again at the London Games but this time he wants gold.

Daniel loves having fun out on the water and is grateful for the privilege of being able to sail all around the world. He believes watching the Australian flag rise in front of the picturesque Qingdao backdrop during his medal ceremony was his greatest sporting moment, only added to by receiving his medal from Swedish Princess Victoria.

Daniel is currently completing a degree in business and property economics after which he will return to sailing and focus on London.