My guest this week is the honourable Matt Cowdrey, OAM.
Matt Cowdrey is an Australian Paralympic swimming champion and politician.
Despite being born with a congenital amputation which means his left arm ends just below his elbow, nothing has ever held this impressive person back.
Matt credits his parents for his 'can-do' attitude admitting that they never helped him do anything that he couldn't do for himself.
By the time Matt was 11, he was a champion swimmer, breaking records throughout Australia and by age 15, he was representing Australia at his first Paralympic games in Athens (2004).
Not only did Matt compete but he came home with 7 medals including 3 gold.
Still today, Matt is considered the most successful Paralympic athlete in Australian history.
11 years, 3 Paralympics, 3 commonwealth games and many world championships later, Matt decided to retire and take up a new career in Politics.
After an inspiring internship in the US, Matt got heavily involved in his local Liberal party.
Last year, Matt won the seat of Colton in the 2018 state election which was previously a Labor-held seat.
I loved this chat with Matt who at just 30 years of age, has lived a life many of us could never dream of.
We spoke about determination, what it's like to represent your country, how he stays motivated and funnily enough, the similarities between swimming and politics - there's more than you think.
I hope you enjoy this conversation with Matt Cowdrey, OAM as much as I did.
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Businesses/areas mentioned:
•Coffee by the Beans, Lockleys
•Third Time Lucky Coffee, Lockleys
•Linear Park, Lockleys
•Torrens River
•Bacchus Bar, Henley Square
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You can learn more about what Matt Cowdrey is up to via his website - https://www.mattcowdrey.com.au/ on Facebook at - facebook.com/MattCowdreyColton/or on Twitter at - twitter.com/matt_cowdrey