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 Charlie Smith Interested in booking this speaker? Call 01329 841652 Back to Our Consultants > |
At 22.55 on Tuesday 12th March 2001, Charlie Smith’s attempt to race the “wrong way” around the world ended when the yacht he was racing on was hit by a freak wave in the notorious Bass Strait. What began however, is a remarkable tale of determination and inspiration as despite horrific injuries, Charlie began a long and painful journey towards recovery. With an interest in sailing and a lifelong ambition to sail the Atlantic, it was a visit to the Southampton Boat Show that inspired Charlie to re-evaluate his goals as he decided to sail around the world instead. Selected as a watch leader onboard Yacht Veritas Charlie had the task of leading and motivating half of the crew whilst at the same time dealing with his own emotions, anxieties and fears. As the race unfolded, Charlie’s leadership and character became critical to the yachts success, and as later understood his absence would be enormous. Charlie’s race ended on the 12th of March when a freak wave hit Yacht Veritas. Saved from certain death by a webbing safety line his injuries were horrific, he had broken both of his legs in five places, virtually severed off his right foot, and broken an elbow, three ribs and one vertebra. The race was no longer about winning but saving a man’s life as Charlie was loosing blood and consciousness quickly, the team were forced to turn the yacht around and head for help. “These are the kind of injuries we would associate with a 90mph motorcycle accident, and those people don’t usually survive. What’s remarkable here is that Charlie didn’t receive proper medical assistance for some 16 hours” Dr Brendan Klar. Charlie’s emotive speech is a fascinating insight into determination and human spirit. Not only did he survive this appalling ordeal, but under the threat of amputation vowed to be standing on his own feet to welcome his team-mates home some 3 months later. His struggle to stand and learn to walk again is testament to his courage and determination, spending many hours in torturous physiotherapy and gymnasiums. Thousands of miles away the remainder of the team battled on - determined to help Charlie achieve his goal they set their own goal of not being last into Cape Town despite being many miles behind the 11 other identical yachts. This is a story of how Charlie and the team achieved, against all the odds, two remarkable goals. Charlie’s presentation focuses primarily on ordinary people working together as a team to achieve extraordinary results, the importance of setting meaningful goals and some significant leadership lessons. He is a confident and articulate speaker able to inspire and motivate a wide range of audiences and is able to tailor his presentation to meet the specific requirements of the client. “An extraordinary and inspirational presentation with a message for everyone” Lexus (GB) Ltd “To even begin to understand what you have been through is impossible, but the inspiration form hearing your presentation makes just about anything possible” RNLI “Charlie Smith’s talk about his exploits in the BT Global Challenge was outstanding, I know there were more than a few people inspired by his tale of overcoming adversity and achieving lofty goals” Southwestern Business Resources Europe Ltd “Charlie has an amazing story to tell with many parallels to the way we run our business” Xerox (UK) Ltd |
