Born in Invercargill, Dan sustained a cervical spinal cord injury playing rugby when he was just 18 years old. He began training with the Canterbury wheelchair rugby team while still in the Burwood rehabilitation unit. He went on to represent New Zealand with the Wheel Blacks for sixteen years, including being part of the team that won a Gold Medal at the Athens 2004 Paralympics, and he captained the team at the Beijing 2008 Games.

With a Bachelor of Arts from Canterbury University, Dan’s working life began as a researcher and presenter for a TV production company that he went on to lead, first as General Manager and then CEO. He took on his current role as Chief Executive of Able, Aotearoa’s leading provider of captioning and audio description services, in 2022.

Dan serves on the board of ACC and several other organisations and is a strong advocate for inclusivity. Watch ACC’s video of Dan discussing ‘The road to a fully inclusive society’ on YouTube.