Bindi Irwin Marries Chandler Powell at Australia Zoo: 'Today We Celebrated Life'

From Emily Strohm of People Magazine

Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell are officially husband and wife!


The couple tied the knot on Wednesday at the Australia Zoo, Bindi announced on Instagram. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, however, the couple decided not to have guests at their wedding.

Chandler posted the same photo, writing, “We’re finally married!”

“Today, March 25, 2020, marks the most amazing day of my life,” he continued. “I married my best friend. After almost a year of planning, we changed everything so that we could enjoy a safe and small private ceremony at our home, Australia Zoo. As we embark on this new life chapter I hope that we can share some love in the world, especially during this challenging time.”

The couple got engaged on July 24 last year — Bindi’s 21st birthday — after six years of dating. They had been planning a big celebration for their “I do’s” in April but canceled just weeks before due to the outbreak of the virus.

Instead, the bride and groom exchanged vows in front of close family members during a private ceremony.



The pair first met in November 2013 when Powell, a Florida native and former professional wakeboarder, traveled to Australia for a competition. While there, he took a trip to the zoo with his family, where the Irwins live and work.

“It just so happened that Bindi was giving tours that day,” he recalled to PEOPLE in December. “I’m like, ‘Wow she is amazing.'”

The pair “hit it off right away,” he said, adding, “We haven’t looked back since.”

When Powell, 23, popped the question to the Animal Planet star, he first got the family’s approval, then enlisted the help of her brother Robert, who documented the special moment with his camera. Afterwards Bindi shared a sweet tribute to her late father, Crocodile Hunter star Steve Irwin, who died after being attacked by a stingray in 2006.

“Dad, you would be so incredibly proud of Robert,” she wrote on the heartfelt post. “He has been such an amazing support during this beautiful new life chapter.”

“I know you’d be beaming with pride when the time comes that he walks me down the aisle,” Bindi continued. “I wish you could be here for these moments, but I know that your spirit lives on in us.”

Bindi previously told PEOPLE she couldn’t be happier to have found a partner who shares so many of her father’s qualities.

“He loves wildlife and conservation and he has this strength — which is necessary when you’re jumping on crocs!” she said.