Richard joined the military after leaving school at the age of 16. As a child, he swam to county, regional and national level. Whilst in the military, he represented his regiment and was soon swimming for the army and tri-service team. Unfortunately, Richard was injured and needed multiple major operations on both legs, which ended his military career.

Richard was determined to not let his injuries defeat him and, as soon as he was able, he was back in the pool. In 2017, Richard applied to become an athlete at the Invictus Games. After completing the time trials and various swim camps, Richard was selected to join Team UK at the 2018 Invictus Games in Sydney where he was a multi-medal winner.