The inspirational story of how Australians were instrumental in rescuing 12 boys and their football coach from flooded caves in Thailand was shared at the Leadership in Citizenship Series breakfast presented by Auspire and Murdoch University this morning.

Murdoch University alumnus and honorary degree recipient Dr Craig Challen SC OAM and Dr Richard Harris are joint Australians of the Year for 2019.

In July 2018, Dr Challen and Dr Harris made worldwide headlines when they joined an international team to rescue a group of boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave in Chiang Rai, Thailand.

Both were awarded the Star of Courage for unwavering and selfless bravery following the successful rescue of the trapped soccer team.

Dr Harris described Craig and himself as a pair of guys who have a strange hobby who were involved in an extraordinary event.

“Craig and I share an adventurous spirit, and for us, it was another adventure as well as a serious exercise,” Dr Harris said.

“This rescue mission was completely unprecedented. There’s never been someone rescued through the water under anesthesia before so as a diver I could also think of a hundred reasons why this was going to fail.”

Dr Challen said they find reward in doing these adventurous things and confronting these challenges but stated that he and Dr Harris were not exceptional human beings.

“It was hard to express the feeling as they went into the cave, particularly on that first day,” he said.

“I can’t emphasise how dangerous it was and it did weigh quite a lot on us. We are looking forward to visiting Thailand to see the boys again and explore the cave properly next month.”

Murdoch University Vice Chancellor Eeva Leinonen praised the courage and selflessness of Drs Challen and Harris.

“At Murdoch, we know the key to finding solutions to the complex global challenges we face lies in strong collaboration, innovation and shared aspiration,” Professor Leinonen said.

“Collaboration was at the heart of the problem solving which enabled Craig and Richard to achieve what they have both admitted loomed as a near impossible mission.”

Murdoch University was proud to co-present this event with Auspire Australia Day Council of WA, which explored how values of a fair go and tenacity, courage and resilience lead to success.