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Kate Richardson-Walsh is one of the most respected figures in British sport and an in-demand high-performance speaker. As a former captain of the Great Britain women’s hockey team, she is known for her exceptional leadership, resilience, and ability to foster unity under pressure. Today, Kate delivers powerful and inspiring talks to businesses, schools, and sports teams, drawing from over two decades at the elite level of international sport. Her style is honest, warm, and deeply motivating, and she connects with audiences through personal stories of triumph, teamwork, and transformation.
Kate began playing hockey at the age of 11 and quickly rose through the ranks to make her international debut at just 19. Her early promise evolved into a remarkable career, becoming captain of England and Great Britain for 13 years. Along the way, she learned the value of persistence, empathy, and communication—qualities that shaped her leadership style. Despite facing challenges including injury and setbacks, she led with conviction and compassion. Kate earned a record 375 caps for her country, making her the most capped female player in British hockey history, and shaped the culture of a team that grew into Olympic champions.
Among her many achievements, the most celebrated came in 2016 when she captained Team GB to its first-ever women’s hockey Olympic gold medal in Rio, triumphing over the Netherlands in a dramatic final. That moment was the culmination of years of development, both personal and collective. Since retiring from international competition, Kate has transitioned into coaching and broadcasting, while also becoming a passionate advocate for inclusion, mental health, and equality in sport. She was awarded an MBE in 2015 and an OBE in 2017, and continues to influence the sporting world through her work with organisations such as the Women’s Sport Trust and Access Sport.
Kate is regularly hired by organisations looking to empower their teams, develop authentic leaders, and explore what it takes to succeed in high-pressure environments. Her talks resonate with people far beyond sport—sharing lessons on trust, resilience, and creating a winning mindset. Whether addressing corporate leaders or young athletes, Kate leaves audiences inspired to lead with purpose and perform at their best.
Kate Richardson-Walsh is regularly booked to engage audiences at events, read their latest feedback below:
“Kate was amazing, her talk was so inspirational and she was so humble and honest. The feedback from our customers and staff following the event and Kates talk has been so positive they really took so much away from it, as did I.”
“Last week we were joined on Campus by Olympic Hockey Player Kate Richardson-Walsh (OBE) who told a brilliant story of building a culture that drives winning teams – focusing on values, behaviours and mindsets. These are all incredibly important to me personally, but also to everyone across our business – her story really inspired all of us in different ways, so a huge thank you to Kate for her insights. The feedback we have received on the session was incredible and I’m sure it isn’t the last we will hear from her!”
“Please could you pass on our huge thanks and a lot of love from our U80 for Kate? The session was more than we could have hoped, perfectly balanced and pitched and really authentic and engaging, we really couldn’t have hoped for anything better. Thank you for the honesty and openness.”
“Kate gave a fascinating, insightful interview on leadership, team dynamics and the culture of a winning team, all in a way that was relevant to our senior corporate audience and which perfectly strengthened the core theme of our event: how to achieve gender balance and redefine leadership”
“Kate was wonderful, such an inspiring speaker and was an absolute delight to have as a guest. We have been inundated with compliments for her and it seems she really struck the right note with the audience in everything she said about team ambition and leadership”
“Bang on in terms of the topics and challenges that we are facing, both as an executive team as well as throughout the teams within the organisation itself. In fact, when you talked of some of the challenges, some of my Management Committee members and I had thought that you had been listening to our committee earlier the same day! I have to say that your delivery is excellent, and so authentic. Many thanks for sharing your experience, your journey, your stories and the personal challenges that you faced yourself. I can relate to each and every one, and it is heartwarming to know that sometimes we are not quite as alone at the top as we might sometimes think.”
“Kate was fantastic! We had really great feedback, our delegates rated the guest speaker 4.87 out of 5. She was a true professional, we were experiencing some technical issues and Kate was able to deliver an excellent, motivating presentation. Feedback from our delegates: ‘Kate Richardson-Walsh was the highlight of the whole event’, ‘Kate was very interesting and inspirational’, ‘Kate was incredible, she brought her medals for us to look at and made time for pictures’ and ‘The guest speaker Kate was a great add-in she was very positive and I for one felt that she left a positive impact on how I deal with things in the future’.”
“Kate is a true role model, and I was delighted that she joined me and my leadership team to share her story. Kate’s honest and personal account of the importance of working as a team to achieve your goals and win left me reflecting on how my team can continue to get the best from ourselves and each other through our equivalent to the gold standards, and of course our ‘Superpowers’! Kate’s passion for her sport and her story are clear to see and we were honoured that she shared not only her successes, but also the challenges she faced and how she overcame them.”
The High-Performance Speakers Agency is the UK’s leading bureau for teamwork, leadership, and marginal gains speakers. We hire speakers for corporate conferences and events across the world and cater to both in-person occasions and online webinars. Our roster includes sportspeople, business leaders, adventurers and more, to ensure audiences of all industries receive tailored, impactful advice on optimised performance.
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