Athlete Speakers

This five-time Paralympian and six-time World Champion in wheelchair racing is living proof that focus, determination, and spirit are the keys to achieving “gold medal” dreams. Combining his unique understanding of life’s challenges with his ...

Dr. Kimberley Amirault-Ryan lives by her philosophy of embracing challenges and pushing boundaries to achieve our highest potential. She’s worked in professional sport since 2001, becoming the first and only woman to be the Performance Consultant with th...

Rasmus Ankersen has trained with the planet’s best athletes to translate their secrets of high performance into usable strategies for leaders and businesses. Known for his bestselling book The Goldmine Effect: Crack the Secrets of High Performance, he is...

Best known as the colourful and entertaining voice of the 2019 NBA Championship winning team, the Toronto Raptors, Jack Armstrong has spent more than two decades covering basketball for TSN and NBA TV. Prior to this, he spent a decade as the head basketball co...

When the challenges are steep, and the competition fierce, Robyn Benincasa provides individuals and organizations the tools they need to inspire themselves and one another to their greatest heights and to cross their most challenging finish lines. As a two-tim...

At the age of 23, Cheryl Bernard started an insurance brokerage and propelled the agency to six million dollars in sales in just 11 years. At the age of 43, she helped Canada win a silver medal in curling at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Passionate about i...

Alexandre Bilodeau captured the imagination of an entire nation when he became the first Olympian to win a gold medal on Canadian soil at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. He repeated his gold medal performance at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, and became ...

What better way to learn the principles of leadership, team dynamics, and performance than with a former player of the New York Jets and Green Bay Packers? Eric Boles draws on his experiences with the National Football League and as a noted global expert in ta...

Jennifer Botterill is one of Canada’s most successful athletes, achieving Olympic glory on numerous occasions. A member of the Canadian Women’s Hockey Team for 14 years, she attended four Olympic games, winning three gold medals and one silver medal. T...

When it comes to building teams, creating momentum, and employing winning strategies, Orlando Bowen is the real deal. A former professional football player and now high-performance coach, for the past fifteen years Bowen has used storytelling, fitness activiti...

Hockey legend Brian Burke is a dynamic figure in both the worlds of business and sport. He is the president of hockey operations for the Pittsburgh Penguins, and formerly held leadership positions in the organizations of the Calgary Flames, the Toronto Maple L...

Cassie Campbell-Pascall laced up her first pair of skates when she was five years old. Today, she is a heroine of Canadian sport. A passionate and dynamic speaker, Campbell-Pascall draws on her accomplishments as the captain of the gold-medal winning Canadian...

Wendel Clark was one of the most beloved players to ever wear the Toronto Maple Leafs jersey. The former team captain, his rambunctious playing style, and exceptional talent on the ice endeared him to fans. Now an ambassador for the team and a spokesperson for...

Few people exemplify the qualities of personal excellence, teamwork, community leadership, and overcoming the odds better than CFL legend Michael “Pinball” Clemons. With boundless energy, Clemon’s talks centre on the potential for each of us to a...

Alexandre Despatie is a Canadian diving sensation. A two-time Olympic medalist and the only diver to have been world champion in three World Championship categories, he is also the holder of 42 Canadian national titles. But his illustrious career was not only ...

Perdita Felicien is a two-time Olympian, 10-time National Champion, two-time World silver medalist, and the only Canadian woman to win a World Championship gold medal in track and field. During her career as a 100-metre hurdler she earned numerous honours, inc...

Dynamic and highly sought-after, leadership expert Tom Flick has delivered over 3,000 presentations to a “who’s-who” list of clients that includes Microsoft, Starbucks, Google, Boeing, American Express, Amazon, NASA, Mercedes-Benz and the Pen...

Rick Hansen, C.C., O.B.C., is a Canadian icon who has dedicated his life to awakening the world to the potential of people with disabilities. He is best known as the “Man in Motion” for undertaking an epic 26-month, 40,000 km journey around the world in hi...

Paul Henderson became a Canadian sports legend on September 28, 1972. With 34 seconds remaining in Canada’s game against the Soviet Union, Henderson scored the winning goal and lifted Canada to victory in the “Series of the Century.” Today, Henderson sha...

As the former Head Coach of the Canadian Women’s Soccer Team, John Herdman took a group once called a “struggling squad” to one that has captured the hearts and minds of Canadians. Under his leadership, the team won two back-to-back bronze medals...

In the world of professional hockey, what plays out behind closed doors is just as important as what plays out on the ice itself. Former professional goaltender, Hockey Night in Canada broadcaster and NHL on Sportsnet analyst Kelly Hrudey takes audiences b...

After spending half her life striving to be the fastest person in the world, six-time Olympic medalist Clara Hughes decided to switch gears and “slow down to the pace of a human being.” This led her to hike over 16,000 kilometres, where she discovered the ...

Many believe our limits are defined by physical traits, but Alex Hutchinson knows that limits only exist in our minds. An award-winning science journalist, Alex draws on his experiences as an elite long-distance runner for Canada’s national team and as a sci...

Earvin “Magic” Johnson has become the most powerful African-American businessman in the world. Having left the basketball court for the boardroom, Johnson has successfully parlayed his skills and tenacity on the court into the business world as Chairman an...

Jennifer Jones is Canada’s most decorated and recognizable female curler. She won an Olympic gold medal as skip of the Canadian team at the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, just 18 months after having ACL surgery, and 15 months after becoming a mother for the fi...

Sheldon Kennedy skated for three teams in his eight-year NHL career, but he is likely best known for his courageous decision to charge his Major Junior Hockey League coach with sexual assault for the abuse he suffered while a teenager under his care. Since the...

Former Off the Record host Michael Landsberg is a charismatic icon of the Canadian sports community. He’s also one of the country’s most vocal mental health advocates, the founder of the #SickNotWeak non-profit organization, and is dedicated to era...

What is it like to always have a front row seat at the CFL? From interviewing the league’s top players and coaches, to sharing behind-the-scene moments with fans, Brodie Lawson holds the job that many only dream of. The host of the Canadian Football Leag...

Catriona Le May Doan was the fastest woman on ice, and the first Canadian to defend a gold medal at any Olympic games. Having held the world record in the 500 metre speed skating event for ten years, Catriona is a world champion athlete and an inspiration to e...

Former NHL All-Star and Olympian Trevor Linden is one of the most celebrated hockey players of all time. Widely respected in both the business and philanthropic worlds, Trevor’s speeches stress the importance of diplomatic leadership, and illustrate how ...

Watching Ron MacLean has been a Canadian tradition for over twenty-five years. Known for his quick wit and encyclopedic hockey knowledge, MacLean reaches millions of homes across the country on Hockey Night in Canada and Hometown Hockey. He has interviewed th...

Rosie MacLennan made history at the 2016 summer Olympics in Rio when she became the first trampolinist to ever win back-to-back Olympic gold medals. She also became the first Canadian athlete to successfully defend an Olympic title at the summer Games and the ...

No job in the world of sports is as intimidating, exhilarating, and as stress-ridden as that of an NHL hockey goaltender. Now imagine doing that job while suffering high anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder and depression, and having your career nearly cut s...

Marnie McBean is one of Canada’s most decorated Olympians, and an expert in turning potential into performance. As a former Specialist in Olympic Athlete Preparation and Mentoring for the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC), McBean prepared athletes emotionally...

Lanny McDonald–best known for his outstanding sixteen year hockey career with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Colorado Rockies, and the Calgary Flames–is not only an exceptional athlete, but is also a  community leader, philanthropist, and successful bus...

Jon Montgomery captured the hearts of Canadians–and the attention of everyone–during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games. After years of hard work, training and perseverance, Montgomery won a gold medal in the skeleton, securing his place in history as...

Organizations face big challenges: whether it is an accelerated rate of change, the threat of disruption, ambitious targets, or aggressive competition. For over twenty years, JP Pawliw-Fry’s curiosity and passion for helping people manage their emotions ...

Obstacles do not get in the way of Chantal Petitclerc. The epitome of determination, perseverance, and discipline, Chantal is the most successful wheelchair racer of all time, boasting multiple medals from all three of the world’s top athletic competitions: ...

It’s always about the journey. That’s the message women’s hockey champion Cheryl Pounder seeks to instill in every audience she speaks to. Believing that learning from our successes, as well as our failures, is the key to staying on the path toward e...

Mario Rigby has always been driven to push the limits. Exploring his entrepreneurial and athletic ambitions since a young age, eventually he was drawn to a grander challenge that led him to pursue an adventure that would allow him to better connect with the wo...

At the 2010 Winter Olympics figure skater Joannie Rochette inspired a nation when she won the bronze medal, just days after tragically losing her mother. Following her performance, she was named Canada’s flag bearer for the closing ceremonies, and chosen...

Sébastien Sasseville empowers leaders to lead with purpose and inspires organizations to embrace change. An endurance athlete, his extraordinary accomplishments — which include summiting Mount Everest, completing the mythical Sahara race, and running across...

Christine Sinclair scored her first international goal at the age of 16, competing in the 2000 Algarve Cup. She has scored more than 185 more goals since and, in January of 2020, became the all-time leading scorer in the history of international soccer. She wa...

Darryl Sittler is one of the greatest players to ever wear the Toronto Maple Leaf uniform. An inductee into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and voted by fans as the centreman on the All-Time Leafs Team, Sittler has an incredible wealth of stories to share from the co...

The night before the Olympic game, in the race to the gold medal, Sami Jo Small was told that she would not be on the ice. At first, she was devastated and angry, but eventually, she chose to rise above those feelings and embraced her new role with enthusiasm....

Masai Ujiri is in his seventh season as President of the Toronto Raptors, leading the team to the most successful period in franchise history, including a NBA Championship. In June 2019, the Raptors won the first NBA title in the franchise’s 24-year hist...

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir not only danced their way to two gold medals at the 2018 Winter Games in PeongChang, South Korea—they danced their way into the hearts of people around the world. The most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history, the pair are ...

How can you stay at the top of your game and perform at the highest level, year after year? Eight-time National Long Drive Champion Lisa “Longball” Vlooswyk, went from being a high-handicap recreational golfer to a professional player who hits farther th...

Bill Walton has a passion—for his work, for family and friends, for music, for life, and for greatness! Bill brings his out-sized passion to the stage and inspires audiences with tales from an improbable life in sport and beyond. He speaks about the secrets ...

A lifelong athlete, Jana Webb is on a mission to share her inimitable perspective of fitness and health with the world. She is the founder and CEO of Joga, a unique blend of yoga and sport that has revolutionized how people, including elite athletes, strengthe...