{"id":922376,"date":"2026-10-09T23:14:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T23:14:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/922376\/"},"modified":"2026-10-09T23:14:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T23:14:17","slug":"the-unravelling-of-sam-wood-from-wealthy-fitness-guru-to-alleged-dv-offender","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/922376\/","title":{"rendered":"The unravelling of Sam Wood, from wealthy fitness guru to alleged DV offender"},"content":{"rendered":"

As Sam Wood sat in his cell on Thursday afternoon, he leaned forward.<\/p>\n

Days earlier, the 46-year-old television personality was charged with assaulting and strangling his wife<\/a> on a family holiday in Noosa.<\/p>\n

Sam Wood denied bail<\/a><\/p>\n

Police allege Mr Wood became involved in a family argument in Noosa on Saturday night before he assaulted and strangled his wife.<\/p>\n

Instead of flying back to Melbourne with his family, the fitness guru was confined to a police watch house.<\/p>\n

After a long preamble, the magistrate delivered news Mr Wood did not want to hear.<\/p>\n

His bail application was refused, with the wealthy businessman ordered to remain behind bars.<\/p>\n

Alleged incident<\/p>\n

The alleged incident at the luxury beachside resort spanned a short period with devastating consequences.<\/p>\n

In Noosa on Saturday night, police allege Mr Wood threw his wife against a wall and tried to strangle her after an argument.<\/p>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Snezana Wood and her daughter Eve Markoski-Wood, either side of Sam Wood. (Supplied)<\/p>\n

The prosecutor told the court of an incident “of a similar nature” in Victoria a few years ago.<\/p>\n

“It involved choking, he also threw her up against a wall and floor and tried to strangle her,” sergeant Jeanette Grigoris told the court.<\/p>\n

Family and domestic violence support services:<\/p>\n

If you need help immediately, call emergency services on Triple Zero.<\/p>\n

Magistrate Janelle Boegheim said while no police statement was made, the alleged incident and the “history of the relationship” would be admissible as evidence.<\/p>\n

“To be clear, that [Victorian] allegation is no proof of any criminal conduct,” Ms Boegheim said.<\/p>\n

The court heard Ms Wood’s video statement described her husband as “volatile and prone to angry outbursts” and she was “compelled to walk on eggshells around him”.<\/p>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Sam Wood appeared via video link in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Thursday. (Supplied: @scottbreton)<\/p>\n

The court also heard Mr Wood’s bail conditions would involve seeking therapeutic intervention due to a severe depressive disorder.<\/p>\n

“He alleges he did not share [this] with his wife or family members to protect them,” Ms Boegheim said.<\/p>\n

Mr Wood’s lawyer told the court his client denied both charges and had never faced the criminal justice system.<\/p>\n

Who is Sam Wood?<\/p>\n

In 2015, Samuel James Wood was a personal trainer at his gym in Melbourne’s south-east when he was selected as the lead of The Bachelor.<\/p>\n

The reality TV dating show was relatively new to Australia and quickly gained a loyal following.<\/p>\n

\"Man<\/p>\n

Sam Wood rose to fame after featuring on the reality TV show The Bachelor in 2015. (Supplied: The Bachelor Australia, Facebook)<\/p>\n

In the final episode, Sam chose Snezana, a single mother from Perth, as his winner. The couple married in 2018.<\/p>\n

The series also provided the platform to launch his next project, 28 by Sam Wood.<\/p>\n

The fitness platform targeting women quickly took off, and earned him a fortune.<\/p>\n

Mr Wood sold the business to pharma billionaire Dennis Bastas in 2022 for a reported $71 million and acquired a small stake in the larger business.<\/p>\n

\"Man<\/p>\n

The former Bachelor star founded a fitness program targeting women called 28 by Sam Wood. (Supplied: 28 by Sam Wood, Facebook)<\/p>\n

While he relinquished ownership, he remained the public face of the popular program.<\/p>\n

But on Tuesday, the company severed all ties with Mr Wood and scrubbed his face from the platform’s website.<\/a><\/p>\n

Court colour<\/p>\n

The atmosphere outside court on Thursday afternoon was tinged with anticipation.<\/p>\n

Dozens of journalists, photographers and cameramen \u2014 some who travelled from interstate \u2014 crowded the footpath outside Maroochydore Magistrates Court.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Dozens of journalists crowded Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Thursday. (ABC Sunshine Coast: Josh Dye)<\/p>\n

As journalists filled the foyer waiting for the courtroom to open, a passing police officer said: “What’s everyone here for?”<\/p>\n

Many members of the media expected he would be granted bail, with plans hatched to capture the moment he would walk out of the watch house, through a throng of reporters and into a waiting vehicle.<\/p>\n

When Mr Wood’s lawyers arrived, his father Andrew was also in tow.<\/p>\n

The 73-year-old was a key part of the bail application, with a mooted plan for Mr Wood to live with his father about 50 kilometres from the family home in Melbourne.<\/p>\n

Inside court with a room full of journalists, Andrew Wood cut a lone figure sitting in support of his son, who was beamed into the courtroom via video link.<\/p>\n

\"Mathew<\/p>\n

Sam Wood’s father, Andrew Wood, entered the court with Mr Wood’s legal team. (ABC News: Nykayla Dux)<\/p>\n

The next 90 minutes shocked observers in court one as graphic details about the alleged incident were aired.<\/p>\n

By the time the acting magistrate read out her decision to refuse bail, most in the room were unsurprised.<\/p>\n

Under Queensland law, strangulation does not have to be prolonged and can last only a few seconds.<\/p>\n

The offence, which was only added a decade ago, carries a maximum seven-year jail sentence.<\/p>\n

The prosecutor told the court on Thursday that Mr Wood could expect jail time if convicted.<\/p>\n

“In my submission a term of imprisonment is likely \u2026 and would be within the range of two years,” Sergeant Grigoris said.Next steps<\/p>\n

Following the hearing, Mr Wood was transferred to Wacol prison in Brisbane’s south-west.<\/p>\n

\"Brisbane<\/p>\n

Sam Wood was transferred to the Brisbane Correctional Facility in Wacol. (ABC News: Leonie Mellor)<\/p>\n

His legal team is preparing to file a bail application in the Supreme Court, which could be heard as early as next week.<\/p>\n

His defence team may again seek to contest the strength of the prosecution’s evidence, which solicitor Mathew Cuskelly attempted to do on Thursday.<\/p>\n

Sam Wood to launch new bail fight<\/a><\/p>\n

Fitness influencer Sam Wood will launch a new fight for bail in Queensland’s highest court after he was remanded in custody yesterday.<\/p>\n

Mr Cuskelly told the court the lack of photographic evidence of Ms Wood’s neck area was relevant given the strangulation charge.<\/p>\n

“One would assume the investigators would have photographed that area, but they are absent,” he told the court.<\/p>\n

Mr Cuskelly also said a doctor’s opinion should have been sought to comment on Ms Wood’s injuries, and that the responding paramedic’s evidence should be approached “cautiously”.<\/p>\n

Pending the outcome of any Supreme Court bail application, Mr Wood will remain in prison ahead of his next court appearance on the Sunshine Coast on November 23.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As Sam Wood sat in his cell on Thursday afternoon, he leaned forward. Days earlier, the 46-year-old television…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":922377,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[484012,24278,64,63,17192,99,2025,39043,134,538,74017,367914,490074,118284,427],"class_list":["post-922376","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-28-by-sam-wood","tag-assault","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-bail","tag-business","tag-charges","tag-domestic-violence","tag-entertainment","tag-fitness","tag-influencer","tag-sam-wood","tag-snezana-wood","tag-the-bachelor","tag-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/922376","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=922376"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/922376\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/922377"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=922376"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=922376"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=922376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}