Adventurer Rob Lea announced as keynote speaker at Explorer Yachts Summit 2026

BOAT International is delighted to announce that adventurer Rob Lea will be the keynote speaker at the Explorer Yachts Summit, opening the event at the Yacht Club de Monaco on 12 November 2026.

Lea hit the headlines this year by achieving what no one else has: conquering the Seven Summits and the Oceans Seven in what he calls the "Double Seven" - training his body to adapt to two of the world's most extreme and radically different environments.

Over 17 years, and with the support of his environmentalist wife Caroline Gleich, Lea climbed the Seven Summits - the highest peaks on every continent - and completed the Oceans Seven, an open-water challenge requiring swimmers to make unassisted solo crossings of seven iconic and notoriously difficult ocean channels. He achieved the final milestone in June 2026.

What makes the achievement even more remarkable is that Lea is not a professional adventurer. A residential real estate agent based in Park City, Utah, he funded almost the entire challenge himself while working full time, without a major sponsorship or large support team.

Lea is no stranger to ambitious challenges. He has climbed Everest, swum the English Channel and cycled across the US in a single six-month stretch as part of his “Ultimate World Triathlon”.

His story is ultimately one of endurance, determination and the belief that exploration is open to everyone. Alongside his own adventures, Lea uses his platform to champion gender equity in endurance sport, climate action and the protection of public lands.

Lea lives in Park City with Caroline and their rescue dog, Lila.

The Explorer Yachts Summit, held in association with Damen Yachting, is the only international summit dedicated solely to the explorer yachting sector.

Attendees can expect a packed programme spanning the breadth of the sector, with more talks to be announced in the coming weeks. This year’s highlights include a BOATPro analysis of the explorer yacht market, a look at the future of connectivity at sea, a debate on how to cruise responsibly in the world’s most sensitive destinations and a candid assessment of the features you really need on an expedition yacht.