Chantal Petitclerc

At the age of 13, Chantal Petitclerc lost the use of her legs; she discovered Paralympic sports at the age of 17 and, five years later, in 1992, participated in her first Paralympic Games in Barcelona.

In 2008, after the Beijing Games, she put an end to an extraordinary career in track athletics.  Chantal holds the record as the athlete having won the most medals in history, with 21 Paralympic medals, including 14 gold, one Olympic medal, and many world championships and world records at all distances, from 100 to 1500 metres. 

Along the way, she has learnt a thing or two about resilience, work, competition, performance and pressure. Life lessons she has been sharing with a touch of humour for over 15 years now, all across Canada and around the world, before groups of all types, at congresses, charities and work meetings.

Today, Chantal Petitclerc is one of the most sought-after public speakers in the country, and audiences truly appreciate the quality of her words and the value of the messages she shares with the public.

Whether she is speaking in English or in French, Chantal Petitclerc always talks of attitude, passion and determination.

Attitude, a disposition to see things in a positive light, whatever the circumstances or events.

“True, we don’t always choose what happens to us in life, what hits us. What we can always do however, is choose the attitude we adopt to face such challenges.”

Passion, essential if we want to go all the way and make our dreams come true.

“When I started out, I had very limited means and my results were rather inconclusive. But I had a passion for this sport as well as a clear vision of what I wanted to achieve: I was going to be the best in the world. I just needed to go faster!”

Lastly, determination, which makes us work relentlessly, with the firm conviction that that is what is needed to get the results we want.

“When I arrived in Beijing, my plan was simple: I needed to be in control of everything I could control… and to be ready to face whatever was beyond my control!”

A Senator,  medalist, public speaker, she is also the author of the book 16 jours à Pékin (16 days in Beijing), which tells the story of her last Paralympic experience. She takes part in various Paralympic athletics and sports organizations’ projects and, in addition to working as an ambassador for the international Right to Play organization, she is directly involved as a spokesperson for Défi Sportif in Montréal.