But winning one of the nation's highest honours brought him undone.
"I'm a blubbering mess," he said when accepting his Young Australian of the Year award at a ceremony in the nation's capital.
The ultra-marathon runner has been given the award in recognition of his fundraising efforts to end homelessness in Australia.
In 2022, that goal saw him run nearly 4000 kilometres from Perth's Cottlesloe Beach to Sydney's Bondi Beach over 46 days, raising more than $2.6 million from 37,000 donors.
Along the way, the former electrician dealt with inflamed tendons, swollen feet and even maggots nesting in the blister on his toe.
"We should be proud of this amazing country. We are so lucky to call it home," he said.
"But unfortunately not everyone feels that way.
"Why is it that 122,000 Australians sleep rough every night? That number should stop us all in our tracks."
Since his Perth-Sydney epic, the 27-year-old has also completed a brutal 1600 kilometre run over 12 days on the running track at Sydney Olympic park.
Brockmann said he was just a few thousand dollars away from his fundraising target of $10 million.
He has also written two books about his feats of endurance: Showing Up and Fire Up.
Australia Day Council boss Mark Fraser praised Brockmann's fundraising work and congratulated him on the award.
"Nedd, confronted by how easily people can experience homelessness and the growing scale of the problem, chose not to look away," Mr Fraser said.
"Instead, he took action and he hasn't stopped since. He continues to run for change, finding new ways to help end homelessness, and engaging others to join the fight along the way.Â
"He is a young man on a clear mission to challenge us all to make a lasting difference."
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