Talks that leave people feeling braver, not just inspired.
Olympic-tested tools, refined over two decades with business teams, tailored to your event.
Every talk works the same way.
Shaped around your brief
Leon works with your planning team beforehand, so the talk fits your theme, your audience and the moment in your agenda.
Practised, not just heard
Audiences try the tools in the room: managing their internal state, shifting mindset and visualising performance.
Useful the next morning
People leave with simple techniques they can use in front of a customer, a team or a difficult decision the very next day.
Courage over Comfort
Play it safe, or dive in? How to show up when it matters most.
Every edge offers a choice: play it safe, or dive in. Leon faced that choice for 16 years on the Great Britain team, winning medals at every major championship, enduring four surgeries on the same shoulder and inventing a dive many said couldn't be done.
In this interactive keynote, audiences don't just hear about courage; they practise it. Leon guides them through the tools he used under Olympic pressure, so they can choose courage in their own moments that count: the pitch, the difficult conversation, the big decision.
Audiences leave with
- Tools to manage their internal state under pressure
- The visualisation techniques Olympic athletes use before they perform
- A simple way to choose courage in the moment
Ideal for: sales conferences, leadership events, wellbeing and performance weeks.
“Leon delivered the Courage over Comfort session at our 2026 UK Sales Conference at Headingley, and he was the speaker everyone was still talking about afterwards. Against a world-class line-up, he was the most remembered and the most quoted.
He didn't just tell a story. He got the whole room doing it, guiding our sales teams through practical tools for managing their internal state and visualising success, so they could use them in front of a customer the next morning.
Leon worked closely with our planning team to shape a session that hit the brief exactly, and that partnership has carried on through The Confident Club's workshops with our people. If you want a speaker who leaves your team braver, not just inspired, book Leon.”
Alex CalvertCommercial Academy Lead, Nestlé UK & Ireland
Degree of Difficulty
Showing up for bold decisions and change.
Leon invented a dive so difficult it wasn't even on the tariff sheet: a backward two-and-a-half somersaults with two-and-a-half twists, in the pike position (5255B). Many believed it was impossible to fit that many rotations into a dive from 10 metres. Leon performed it in competition, with a tariff of 3.8, the most difficult dive of its time and for the next decade. The media called it “the Taylor”.
Before anyone could do the dive, someone had to believe it could be done. This talk explores how beliefs shape performance, and how to commit to something bold before the evidence exists.
Audiences leave with
- How to challenge limiting beliefs about what's possible
- How to commit when the outcome isn't guaranteed
- Permission to think beyond the obvious and try what hasn't been done
Ideal for: organisations facing change, innovation or a step up in ambition.
The Mentor Effect
Helping others show up.
For over 20 years, Leon has mentored Olympic and Paralympic athletes, including a young Tom Daley. This talk, based on his book MENTOR, reveals what great mentors actually do, and how anyone can do it.
Audiences leave with
- What great mentors actually do
- How to build confidence in others
- Simple conversations that help people perform at their best
Ideal for: HR, L&D and leadership audiences.
“Leon was my mentor for many crucial years of my career and, without his help, many situations would have been a lot harder for me!”
Tom DaleyOlympic champion diver. Taken from Tom's foreword to MENTOR.
“As a friend and mentor, Leon brought energy, positivity and belief, just when I needed it most.”
Sophie Christiansen CBEEight-time Paralympic champion
Go deeper.
Any talk can become a hands-on workshop. Further topics include feedback and building better habits. Just ask.
Formats
Keynote
Tailored to your event
Workshop
Hands-on sessions on any of the topics above
Panel, interview & Q&A
Panellist, interviewee or moderator
Book Leon when…
- your team is facing big change
- you need people to back themselves under pressure: pitching, selling, leading
- you want a keynote that lifts the room and sticks
- you're running a wellbeing or performance week and want substance, not slogans
Yes, the medal comes too.
Leon brings his Athens 2004 silver medal to every event, and makes time afterwards for people to hold it, wear it and take a photo.
“…what worked even better was the amount of time he spent with us after… allowing them to see/touch/wear the medal. It made the evening really special.”
Judith HardingBT
Let's talk about your event.
Tell us your date, audience and theme, and one of the team will be back in touch within 48 hours with ideas for the right talk.