The Sweeney Agency

About Silken Laumann - Olympic Medalist and Motivational Speaker:

Silken Laumann is now one of Canada's highly recognizable and beloved Canadian athlete. Her career started at the age of 18 when she qualified for the National Rowing Team. Just one year later she won a bronze medal for Canada at the Summer Olympics in LA. A gold medal followed at the Pan American Games in 1987 and in 1991 Silken Laumann became the world champion.

After winning The World Championships in 1991 Silken Laumann was the firm favorite for gold in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. However, only ten weeks prior to the games, while training in Germany another rowing skull cut across her path shredding muscles and breaking bones in her leg. Her leg injury was so severe that doctors doubted she would row again. Within ten days, there were five operations. With dogged determination, she was back in her rowing shell just 27 days after the accident ready to pursue her Olympic dream. Through perseverance, determination and good medical support Silken Laumann rowed in the Barcelona Olympics. This courageous comeback caught the imagination and admiration of the world and remarkably she won the bronze medal for Canada.

Numerous awards and successes followed, including a silver medal at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. In 1998, she was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.

Silken teaches groups the critical elements for realizing success by presenting her audiences with striking anecdotes and powerful analogies, while sharing the tools she developed during her seventeen years of international competition. For groups and individuals to reach their true potential and be effective leaders, we need to find the courage to continually transform; to move beyond our comfort zone and accept that overcoming a challenge is a part of life that comes with a certain level of discomfort, but can ultimately result in great joy, new found wisdom and strength. Silken draws upon her own remarkable sporting experiences and shares the lessons she has learned about life.

Vision, focus and commitment are powerful tools for realizing Olympic excellence, and when applied consistently, they empower individuals to achieve their own potential. Silken Laumann relives the excitement and challenges of her own incredible dream and Olympic story. Silken provides an insight into how athletes motivate themselves; what makes a great coach; the power of a team and the importance of excellence in our society.

What Silken Laumann Talks About:

Silken Laumann is also a remarkable speaker with a disarming sense of humor. Far more than a sports story, Silken’s is a story of courage, perseverance and the triumph of the human spirit. While Silken’s achievements are unique to her field, her strategies for achieving personal excellence are relevant, fascinating, and highly motivational to individuals and their organizations striving to reach their full potential.

Rowing Smooth in Rough Waters: Finding Courage and Opportunity in Difficult Times
Silken Laumann discovered at a young age that challenge and change are as much a part of life as our gold medal moments. From being rammed by another boat ten weeks before the Barcelona Games, to starting her own not for profit, each experience in Silken's personal and professional life has given her the unique ability to always see the up side of down. In times of challenge, her ability to relentlessly focus on desired results, to surround herself with positive people, and find the courage to face her fears, has her repeatedly defying the odds. Silken shares key strategies learned through sport and life experiences, combined with wisdom from highly successful individuals. From developing personal honesty, protecting positive energy, visualizing desired results, and challenging yourself to feel a little fear each day, there are learned strategies for building a positive mindset. With courage, vision, and personal integrity we can all emerge stronger through challenge and change.