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Diving Forwards
“Water doesn’t care if you’re paralysed or not and it holds you with far more love and respect than any wheelchair ever could.”
We are thrilled to welcome TV presenter and campaigner Sophie Morgan as a fourth element ambassador. Sophie found her scuba passion last year and represents PADI as an ambassadiver. We chatted to Sophie about her diving journey…
What inspired you to try Scuba Diving?
I always wanted to try it but life kept getting in the way, so when I finally got the chance, I jumped right in – literally!! I knew it would be liberating for someone with my disability but nothing could prepare me for the level of joy it gave me. It’s incredible.
Did you have any expectations or hopes/fears before getting into the water?
Lots of hopes, no fears, thankfully.
How were your first dives?
My mind was blown from the moment we began to be honest. I was lucky enough to have my first dives in the Maldives so I have been spoiled rotten. We saw a turtle on the first dive and a reef shark on the next! I started my course with Oyster Diving in the UK and then completed it with Alexis Vincent, Dive Butler and with such great instruction, it was easy to get through the skills and enjoy the moment!
How is your relationship with the ocean?
If I could live there, I would. As a paraplegic, the water offers me a level of freedom I can’t experience on land and it’s honestly hard to leave.
What could be done to make diving more inclusive and accessible for people with disabilities?
It’s a very accessible activity so we need instructors to feel more confident about helping us to access it. If anyone wants to know how they can welcome more disabled divers, get in touch.
What would you say to other divers who are at the beginning of their underwater journey?
Dive in – the blue planet is waiting for you!
Where are you diving next?
I have no idea but I am hoping the Red Sea or Australia!
So are you hooked?!!
Addicted!
Sophie Morgan
Sophie is a TV Presenter best known for fronting the Paralympics, and is co-founder of Making Space Media & The Equality Experience (launching Spring 2023). Her memoir, ‘Driving Forwards‘ is available now. Sophie is a regular columnist for Conde Nast Traveller and co-founder of the Rights On Flights Campaign.
Sophie fronts her own Channel 4 series Living Wild; How to Change your Life. She also reports on ground-breaking documentaries such as Dispatches.
Paralysed in a car crash when she was eighteen years old, today Sophie is an award-winning campaigner and advocate for disability rights and has been voted in the top 10 most influential disabled people in the U.K. for the past three years. She is on the special advisory board of Human Rights Watch, Patron of disability charity Scope and the spinal injuries charity Back Up. She has spoken at the United Nations, for whom she is on the Advisory Board for road safety.
