Athletes & Commentators

Katie Ledecky is a 14-time Olympic Medalist (seven Gold, three Silver) and 21-time World Championship Gold Medalist, the most for any female swimmer. She has broken 14 World Records and 38 American Records in her career. Katie was the most decorated female athlete at both Tokyo and Rio Games and had the most decorated single Olympics performance ever by a U.S. female athlete in Rio. Katie’s success has earned her USA Swimming’s Golden Goggles Award as Female Swimmer of the Year an unprecedented eight times. A recent graduate of Stanford University, Katie is passionate about the importance of education, especially STEM and leadership programs for girls. Katie went home with more hardware at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics - two gold medals and two silver medals, making her the most decorated female swimmer in individual events of all time. She also made history by winning gold at the first ever 1500m women’s event.

Polar explorer, TED speaker, and record-breaking long-distance skier Ben Saunders fuses the spirit of adventure with impressive technical ingenuity. He has five North Pole expeditions under his belt and is best known for leading one of the most ambitious expeditions in a century. Humble and self-effacing, he is an explorer of limits and his message is one of inspiration, empowerment, and boundless potential. He explores the dichotomy between ideas and action and urges audiences to consider carefully how to spend the “tiny amount of time we each have on this planet.”

Widely regarded as one of Britain’s greatest-ever skiers, Chemmy Alcott is a four-time Winter Olympian who has defied the odds in sport and life to inspire the world and show people that anything is possible when they’re willing to take risks. She represented Team GB throughout her 20-year sporting career, during which she became the eighth ranked skier in the world and the first British ski racer to win a run in the World Cup.

Stuart Pearce is one of England's best known and most loved football icons. An electrician by trade, Stuart started his playing career at non-league Wealdstone, and rose up to win a championship with Manchester City and represent the England National Team. He has since been a the Head Coach of England's U21 team and managed England's 2012 Olympic team.

John Calipari is the former head coach of the University of Memphis Tigers, the University of Massachusetts Minutemen, and the National Basketball Association's New Jersey Nets. He is the only coach to direct three different colleges to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. As a college coach, Calipari has 18 20-win seasons (17 official), 8 30-win seasons (7 official), and has been named National Coach of the Year 3 times and is a 2-time Naismith National Coach of the Year. In the 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Calipari led Kentucky to its 8th NCAA Tournament Championship, and the first of his career.

Perry McCarthy is quite simply unique. He is an ex Formula One driver, he is a bestselling author and he was the original secret racing driver from BBC Top Gear 'The Stig'. Perry combines his famous sense of humor and his experiences of rising to the top against the odds to entertain audiences worldwide with hilarious after dinner speeches or captivating business and motivational addresses.

An adventurer, record-setter, and boundary-breaker, Darcy Gaechter is best known as the first woman - and member of the first team - to kayak the Amazon River from source to sea. The journey required her crew to paddle over 4,000 miles across the widest part of South America, a voyage that took 148 days to complete. She is also the author of The Kayaker’s Guide to Ecuador and Amazon Woman, an adventure memoir detailing her Amazon River expedition and the life challenges she faced to get there – the rights of which have been purchased to turn her story into a movie. Gaechter inspires audiences with her personal journey of overcoming obstacles and making the impossible possible – sharing useful tactics to take on even the most daunting of challenges and demonstrating how a strong belief in yourself and in your goal are key ingredients to any success.

Dominique Dawes spent years breaking barriers and breaking records in the sport of Gymnastics and is best known for her tremendous success as an Olympic gymnast who competed in three Olympic Games. She was a member of the gold-medal-winning "Magnificent Seven" team at the 1996 Atlanta Games. After much dedication to the sport, Dominique retired to focus on her passion to encourage, educate and motivate others. Currently the Co-Chair of the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, she works closely with First Lady Michelle Obama and the President’s Council to help promote the Let’s Move! Initiative, educating children on fitness and nutrition while motivating them to get moving.

Alex Gregory is an Olympic rowing gold medalist for Great Britain and world rowing championship winner. He is passionate about sharing his story and inspiring others to find the strength that lies within themselves. In 2013, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to rowing.

As an entertainer for over twenty years, Jon is known as the NFL's “Magic Man" and is respectfully referred to as the "Entertainer's Entertainer." He also has performed personally for Jason Statham, Nicholas Cage, Garth Brooks, Magic Johnson, the entire New England Patriots football team, Joe Montana and Dan Marino.

Amy Purdy had a typical childhood until losing her legs at 19 as a result of Meningitis, which has led to an adulthood of extraordinary accomplishments. Amy is the top ranked adaptive snowboarder in the US, a three-time World Cup Para-Snowboard winner, the 2014 Paralympic Bronze Medalist, and the 2018 Paralympic Silver Medalist. She is the co-founder of Adaptive Action Sports (AAS), a non-profit organization which helps disabled youth, young adults, and wounded veterans get involved with action sports, and the author of the New York Times best-selling book, On My Own Two Feet. Amy has evolved into a powerful inspirational and motivational speaker who has been seen by millions of people and invited to share her story to audiences around the world.

Reggie Rivers is a renaissance man whose talents and achievements have spanned many different disciplines. He’s a former NFL running back, a media personality, a business owner, an author and a motivational speaker, master of ceremonies, and auctioneer. He entered the NFL as a classic underdog—an undrafted rookie free agent and a longshot to make a team. But he managed to win a roster spot with the Denver Broncos and stayed with the team for six seasons. In speeches, Reggie shares the lessons he’s learned from the NFL that translate perfectly to the business world and enable peak performance. His message will reinforce the ideas that organizations are already preaching to their teams – providing that “aha” moment by presenting these strategies in the context of football.

Jim Harbaugh was named the Los Angeles Chargers head coach on January 24, 2024. Jim Harbaugh has been the head coach of the University of Michigan football team for nine seasons. He was named the 20th coach in Michigan football history in 2014 and is the sixth former Michigan football player to be named the leader of college football's winningest program. Harbaugh is a National Champion, leading Michigan to the 2023 CFP and defeating Washington in the National Championship game. Harbaugh came to Ann Arbor, MI after an impressive four-year run in the National Football League as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers (2011-2014). He led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game in each of his first three seasons, winning the George Halas Trophy as NFC champions in 2012. Harbaugh tallied a 49-22-1 overall record that included a 5-3 mark in the postseason as 49ers head coach. At Michigan, Harbaugh has guided the Wolverines to a 74-25 record and 51-17 in Big Ten games. He has led Michigan to five 10-win seasons, seven bowl games, three straight College Football Playoffs (2021-23), and a National Championship (2023). He is highly respected in the coaching world for his consistent success and winning philosophy.

Track star Lolo Jones has won both USA and World championships in hurdle events, and competed at the 2008, 2012 and 2014 Olympic Games. Born in Iowa in 1982, Lolo Jones excelled in sports throughout high school, earning the title of Gatorade Midwest Athlete of the Year. In college, she continued to thrive, winning several NCAA championships in indoor and outdoor hurdles. She went on to win USA and World championships (indoor track and field) in 2008, also competing in the 100-meter hurdles at the Olympic Games that year, where she failed to take home a medal. Jones had surgery on her spinal cord in 2011 and competed at the Olympic Games in 2012, where she placed fourth in the 100-meter hurdles. She went on to participate in the 2014 Winter Olympics as a bobsledder, where she finished in 11th place. At Louisiana State University, Jones quickly proved to be one of the best hurdlers at the college level. She won the 100-meter hurdles at the 2002 NCAA Track & Field Championship, and was part of the runner-up team for the 100-meter relay event. Building on her success, Jones won the 60-meter indoor hurdles event at the NCAA Championships in both 2003 and 2004. In 2005, Jones completed her studies and devoted herself entirely to her track career. Her dedication soon paid off. She came in first at the Torino Memorial event that year, and won at both the Heusden and Ostrava track events the following year. In 2008, Jones seemed to be at the top of her game. She won the USA Outdoor Championship, as well as the USA and World Indoor championships. Going into the Beijing Olympic Games that year, Jones was considered to be an odds-on favorite for the gold. But she stumbled on the second-to-last hurdle in the 100-meter hurdle event, and ended up finishing 17th. • Salvation Army Speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sP9XfjWQlk