Aussie Cave Diver Goes From Mars Hopeful to Laos Rescuer

A man who once applied for a one-way ticket to Mars is now using his extraordinary skills to help save lives right here on Earth.

Josh Richards, a South Australian cave diver, joined an international team in Laos last week to rescue two people still missing in a flooded cave system. The former soldier turned comedian turned prospective astronaut has squeezed through some of the tightest underwater passages on the planet, despite being claustrophobic on land.

"I love cave exploration, and I force myself through dry caves to get to the water," Richards told ABC Adelaide. "I don't experience claustrophobia underwater, interestingly enough, and I think that's related to being weightless."

Richards earned his reputation exploring South Australia's Limestone Coast with the Soggy Wombats diving team. In 2022, he discovered 400 meters of new passage in Mount Gambier's famous Engelbrecht Cave. Last year, his team found another 100-meter tunnel at Pines Cave near Tantanoola.

His teammate Will Passos says Richards lives by a simple motto: "You can't say that the cave ends until we go and touch the wall at the back." The two recently returned from cave exploring in Japan when Richards got the call to head to Laos.

Before diving took over his life, Richards had quite the journey. After earning a physics degree and serving in the army, navy, and British Royal Marine Commandos, he performed stand-up comedy internationally as a ukulele-playing koala. In 2016, he applied to Mars One, a project planning a one-way human mission to Mars. He made it to the final 100 candidates out of 200,000 applicants.

Writing two books about the Mars application actually led him back to diving. "I actually have the opportunity to explore here, go and dive these caves," he said in 2021. "In some ways it's fulfilling that explorer element that wants to go to Mars."

Why This Inspires

Richards isn't the first Australian diver trained on South Australia's Limestone Coast to answer the call for cave rescues. In 2018, Richard Harris and Craig Challen helped save a boys' soccer team trapped in a Thai cave, earning them joint Australian of the Year honors.

Mount Gambier has become a global training ground for elite divers. Darren Mitchell, who owns diving accommodation there, says it simply: "If anyone wants to ascend up and be a good scuba diver, they must come to the Mount sooner or later."

Passos wasn't surprised his friend volunteered immediately. "I think it's in his nature to be involved and to be doing what he's doing right now," he said.

Sometimes the greatest adventures aren't found on distant planets, but in the courage to dive deep and help others find their way home.

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