Clara Hughes

Speaking topics

Presentations listed below include in-person and virtual keynotes, as well as workshops, fireside chats, and other presentation formats.

• Open Heart, Open Mind

  From one of Canada’s most decorated Olympians comes a raw but life-affirming story of one woman’s struggle with depression.

  In 2006, when Clara Hughes stepped onto the Olympic podium in Torino, Italy, she became the first and only athlete ever to win multiple medals in both Summer and Winter Games. Four years later, she was proud to carry the Canadian flag for Team Canada in the opening ceremony of the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games. But there’s another story behind her celebrated career as an athlete, behind her signature smile.

  After her first Olympics in the grueling world of competitive endurance sport that stripped away her confidence and bruised her body, Hughes began to realize that her physical extremes, her emotional setbacks, and her partying habits were masking a severe depression. The relentless pursuit of excellence in sport was put on hold in order to heal. When she did eventually return to competition, the healing path became an integral part of her athletic success. After winning bronze in the last speed skating race of her career, she decided to retire, and has since emerged as one of our most committed humanitarians, advocating for a variety of social causes both in Canada and around the world.

  Told with honesty and passion, “Open Heart, Open Mind” is Hughes’ personal journey through physical and mental pain to a life where love and understanding can thrive. Throughout it all, connection was the ultimate reward. Whether on the Olympic stage, hiking long-distance trails around the world, or within the stillness on the healing path, deep connection with place, space, self, and others is her ultimate focus. Her revelatory and inspiring story will touch the hearts of all Canadians.

• Movement is Medicine

  Clara Hughes has lived a life in constant motion. From the highest level of sport, winning medals for Canada in speed skating and cycling, to the long-distance hiking trails.

  Since competing in her last Olympic Games, Hughes has spent months on the trail, hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, Appalachian Trail, Grand Enchantment Trail, Arizona Trail, and John Muir Trail, as well as thousands of kilometres of bike touring, adventure kayaking, and so much more.

  Moving through mountains, desert, and wilderness spaces have, in her own words, “allowed for a disconnection to the fast and furious pace of modern society, slowing things down to the pace of a human being.” Through nature and the power of movement, she was able to heal.

  Whether you live in a big city or mountain town, Hughes shares how the opportunity to heal is available to us all. Through humour and practical advice, she helps audiences learn to listen so they can heal, and disconnect so that they can reconnect with who they really are, let go of the fear of failing, and learn to truly feel.

• A Life in Motion

  Clara Hughes is as passionate about adventure as she was for Olympic sport. In 2017, she made the unprecedented move of walking away from everything: a successful career in broadcasting, public speaking, and the many advocacy roles she cared deeply about.

  She took her first steps into a new life at a different speed. After spending years trying to be the fastest person on earth in two different sports (speed skating and cycling) Clara’s new goal was to slow it down to the pace of an average human being. To do this, she began walking the long-distance trails of North America, seeking experiences, connections, and lessons from living in the simplest ways while immersed in nature. With close to 20,000 kilometres travelled, she is back to share her extraordinary experiences and discoveries.

  Join Clara as she takes you through a wide-ranging journey of self-discovery. From desert spaces to mountain places to vast plains, she discovered beauty and wisdom hidden all around her while facing her ultimate challenge: herself.