As well as physical prowess, elite level athletes need to have elite level mentalities in order to sustain, and achieve excellence.
Their resilience, motivation, mindset and ‘taste’ for high-performance are definitive traits that map seamlessly onto our own personal and professional lives.
Drawing on their own captivating narratives of triumph against adversity, sportspeople effectively communicate lessons from their own journeys into workplace principles and inspire employees and organisations to face challenges and strive for success.
With the upcoming Olympics in Paris, admiration and appreciation for athletes will be enhanced to even greater levels, that can be captured and capitalized on with the right speaker.
What makes a champion? How do we cope with and maintain success? How can teams perform well when under pressure? Where does one turn when the going gets tough?
Whether it’s motivation, dedication, overcoming challenges or achieving and maintaining excellence, these speakers can enhance performance through their own personal experiences.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
Olympic Champion, and One of the Greatest Sprinters of All Time
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce ascended to prominence in 2008 when, aged 21, she became the first Caribbean woman to win 100m gold at the Olympics. In 2012 she defended it and now holds 3 Olympic golds and 10 World Championship golds.
In 2022 CBC Sports recognized her as the greatest 100m sprinter of all time whilst many sources, like Athletics Weekly, described her as the greatest female sprinter in history. In 2023 she won the prestigious Laureus World Sports Award for Sportswoman of the Year.
With her inspiring life story of beginning barefoot at school, to bursting on the scene in Beijing, and now being recognised as one of the best ever, Fraser-Pryce is able to inspire audiences and effectively communicate how to overcome adversity to achieve greatness.
One of the greatest and most famous athletes of all time, Usain Bolt is a six-time gold medallist and the first person ever to win back-to-back Olympic golds at 100m, 200m, and 4x100m.
Bolt’s journey to worldwide stardom started at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing where he won the 100m, 200m and 4x100m, all in world record times. He followed this up with golds in the same events in 2012 and then golds again in 2016. Not to mention the 11 World Championships golds he also amassed.
From his own personal experience Bolt is able to speak eloquently on achieving and sustaining excellence, and how to get the best out of yourself and your team.
Usain Bolt
First Man in Olympic History to win both the 100m and 200m races in world record times, and Serial Entrepreneur & Micro Mobility Champion
Sir Chris Hoy MBE is one of Great Britain’s most successful Olympic athletes, with six gold medals and one silver.
In 2012 Chris won his fifth and sixth gold medals – in the Keirin and Team Sprint – becoming Great Britain’s most successful Olympic athlete of all time with six gold medals and one silver.
A highly capable public speaker and media presenter, Chris is now highly regarded for his sporting commentary in the UK in various Olympic, Commonwealth Games and European Championships roles. He has strong communications experience and effectively delivers talks on motivation, inspiration and success under pressure.
Dame Kelly Holmes DBE spent almost a decade in the British Army before leaving to pursue a senior athletics career full time. In 2004 she wrote her name into the history books by becoming the first British female athlete to win gold at both the 800 and 1500m at the 2004 Olympic Games.
Dame Kelly has experience talking about facing adversity and the importance of a hope to succeed. She imparts key information from her life as an Instructor in the British Army and her athletics career. She also leads practical and physical team building sessions.
Sir Clive Woodward
England's 2003 World Cup Winning Head Coach; Director of Sport Team GB: London 2012, Vancouver 2010, Beijing 2008; and Founder and Chairman - Hive Learning
Sir Clive Woodward led the England Rugby team to their only Rugby World Cup victory in 2003.
He had the job of transforming the England side from the amateur era into the professional one. England steadily improved under Woodward – after an underwhelming performance in the 1999 World Cup they won the Six Nations in 2000 and 2001 and completed the Grand Slam in 2003; entering the world cup as No1 in the world and then backing up that title with the cup.
Sir Clive Woodward is able to leverage his own experience of management and analysis to speak effectively on what it takes to turn around performance and how to see projects through to the end. He is an inspiring leader whose motivational insights are keenly sought after.
Justine Henin was one of the world’s best tennis players from 2003 to 2008. Her impressive track record includes 43 victories on the WTA circuit including 7 Grand Slams, 2 Masters, 1 Olympic Gold Medal and 1 Fed Cup.
She was awarded 2 Belgium Athlete of the Years and 1 World Athlete of the Year before retiring, still ranked world No.1, in 2008.
Henin’s inspiring personal experiences position her well to speak confidently on leadership, success, motivation and maintaining greatness.
Justine Henin
Justine Henin won the gold medal in the women’s singles at the 2004 Olympic Games and she is the first Belgian tennis player to win a Grand Slam tournament.
P V Sindhu is the first and only Indian to become the badminton world champion and only the second individual athlete from India to win two consecutive medals at the Olympic Games.
As one of India’s most successful sportspersons who has also managed to maximise her endorsements throughout her career, P V Sindhu is well placed to speak on managing high performance and making the most of opportunities.
After huge success in junior BMX and then motocross competitions, Axel Allétru signed with KTM in 2009 in the motocross world championship. One year later, at only 20-years-old, a tragic accident left him paraplegic.
One year to the day after his accident Allétru participated in the French disabled swimming championship. Over the next few years he amassed 6 gold in the European championships before retiring to focus on motivational speaking and a return to motorsport.
Allétru’s incredible story enables him to inspire audiences on topics such as resilience, ambition and positivity. With this he manages to develop team spirit and encourage audiences to approach new obstacles in the right frame of mind.
Farah Ann Abdul Hadi
Malaysian Olympic Gymnast & 7 Times SEA Games Gold Medalist & World Cup Silver Medalist
Farah Ann Abdul Hadi is a Malaysian former artistic gymnast. She is only the third Malaysian Gymnast to qualify for the Olympics and won 7 golds at the Southeast Asian Games representing Malaysia. She was named 2019 Female Olympian of the Year by the Olympic Council Malaysia.
Away from gymnastics, Farah Ann has been immortalised as a Barbie doll by toymaker Mattel. The doll is part of Barbie’s Dream Gap project which aims to inspire young girls worldwide, with Farah Ann included as one of the role models.
Farah Ann Abdul Hadi specialises in speaking on high performance, teamwork and overcoming obstacles.
