Don Elgin
Paralympian, Leadership Expert and Keynote Speaker
Paralympian, author, and motivational speaker known for his larrikin charm and down-to-earth nature. A multi-medal athlete and leader, Don shares his extraordinary journey, inspiring audiences of all ages with practical strategies for success, resilience, and living life to the fullest.
Quick Contact
Don Elgin is a Paralympian, motivational speaker, author, and respected leader whose extraordinary achievements on and off the track have inspired audiences worldwide. Born without the lower half of his left leg in rural Victoria, Don turned adversity into opportunity, representing Australia in athletics at four World Championships, three Paralympic Games, two World Cups, and a Commonwealth Games. He first represented his country at age 18 and spent two decades as an elite athlete, returning from retirement to compete in the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, making the discus final.
A multiple Paralympic medalist, Don won bronze in the pentathlon at Sydney 2000, silver at the 2002 IPC World Championships, and one silver and two bronze at Athens 2004. He served as Australian flag bearer at the 2006 World Championships and Track & Field team manager for the Australian team at London 2012. Don has also commentated at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and appeared on Andrew Denton’s Enough Rope.
Off the track, Don is a passionate advocate and leader. He was the inaugural patron of Disability Professionals Victoria, former president of Sandringham Athletics Club, former vice president of the Amputee Association of Victoria, founding board member of the Start Foundation, inaugural ambassador for New Horizons Club, and is currently a board member of Wallara Australia Ltd.
Don is a two-time author, releasing One Foot On the Podium (2015), which won Silver at the 2016 Independent Publisher Book Awards, and One Foot Beyond the Podium (2016). He has completed the Kokoda Trail twice and continues to inspire through his boutique company StarAmp Global, which manages some of Australia’s finest amputee talent, and Star Leadership, a horizontal leadership model that improves team and individual performance through culture and behaviours.
As a speaker, Don delivers engaging, tailor-made presentations based on his real-life experience, sharing his journey from “little bush battler to world-beater” and providing audiences with practical strategies for resilience, success, and living life to the fullest. Upbeat, relatable, and energising, Don leaves audiences motivated, inspired, and ready to tackle any challenge.
