Hayley Wickenheiser

Topics

Presentations

Growing up and playing hockey as a female in the male-dominated world of hockey

How to achieve success through teamwork

Change is often difficult, but improvement is always possible

Success comes from going above and beyond what people normally do

How to stay motivated and on-top of your game

Summary Profile

Regarded as one of the best female hockey players in the world with an uncompromised determination and dedication to her sport, Wickenheiser has represented Canada at the Winter Olympics four times, capturing three gold and one silver medal. She has also captured six gold medals at the Women's World Hockey Championships and 11 gold medals from 4 Nations Cup tournaments throughout her career. Wickenheiser is an award winner, community leader, mentor, history-maker and an accomplished business woman. Her talks on change, motivation and teamwork are truly inspiring.

It all started at age 15 in Shaunavon, Saskatchewan when Wickenheiser was chosen for the Canadian Women's National Team. She has since led the squad to six gold and one silver medals at the Women's World Hockey Championships. As an Olympian, she earned a silver medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan and two gold medals at the Winter Olympics in 2002 and 2006. Accompanying all thathardware, Hayley was also named the tournaments' most valuable player in both victorious Olympic runs as well as in numerous Esso Women's Hockey Championships.

Wickenheiser has proven to be an elite athlete time and time again. Sports Illustrated recently named her number 20 of the Top 25 Toughest Athletes in the World.(Read Article) She is also a two-time finalist for the Women's Sports Foundation Team Athlete of The Year. In January 2003, Wickenheiser made hockey history when she became the first female hockey player to notch a point in a men's professional game with the Kirkkonummen Salamat of the Finnish second division. More recently, Wickenheiser played in Eskilstuna, Sweden with a men's professional division-one hockey team for the 08-09 season.

Along with hockey, Wickenheiser has mastered a number of sports. An elite softball player, she participated in the 2000 Summer Olympics as a member of Team Canada and most recently worked as a Softball Analyst with CBC's coverage of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. Wickenheiser's passion for sport is paralleled by her drive to give back to the community in several ways, particularly to organizations with a commitment to youth such as KidSport, Right To Play, Dreams Take Flight, Clean Air Champions and Spread The Net. In May 2007, Hayley traveled to Rwanda with a team of Canadian Olympic athletes for Right to Play, an athlete-driven humanitarian organization.

Putting her pursuit of a BSc at the University of Calgary to good use, Wickenheiser has led numerous projects with the goal of raising the profile of women's hockey around the world. Hayley is constantly working to provide mentoring opportunities for young athletes and is currently planning an international women's hockey festival in Burnaby, BC immediately following the Vancouver Olympics.

Wickenheiser lives in Calgary, Alberta with her partner Tomas and son Noah where she is training for her fourth Olympic appearance at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.