Dr Jessica Gallagher OLY
Paralympian, Multi-Sport Athlete, Osteopath & Advocate
Jess Gallagher is the first Australian athlete to win medals at both the Summer and Winter Paralympics, a multi-sport champion across four disciplines, and a passionate advocate for sport and community.
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Jess Gallagher is the first Australian athlete—Olympic or Paralympic—to win medals at both the Summer and Winter Paralympics, and has represented Australia in four sports: alpine skiing, athletics, track cycling, and rowing.
At the 2010 Vancouver Winter Paralympics, Jess became the first Australian woman to win a Winter Paralympics medal, claiming bronze in the Slalom. She followed this with another bronze in the Giant Slalom at the 2014 Sochi Winter Paralympics and a bronze in the 1km Time Trial on the tandem at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.
Jess has also achieved two Commonwealth Games gold medals and 11 World Championship medals across athletics and track cycling. In 2022–2023, she represented Australia in both rowing and track cycling, successfully qualifying for the 2024 Paralympics in both disciplines. Choosing to focus on track cycling in Paris, Jess won a silver medal on the tandem at the 2024 Games.
Off the track, Jess is a fully qualified osteopath, an ambassador for multiple not-for-profit organisations, and in 2023 was awarded RMIT University’s highest honour, an Honorary Doctorate in Social Sciences.
Topics
Are You Ready?
Trust and Change
Hurtling down a mountain at over 100km/hour with someone else acting as your sight there is no greater skill required than trust. It’s a critical element to Jessica’s success as a summer and winter Paralympic medallist, Osteopath and Board Director and yet trust in business and society globally is at an all-time low. In this keynote Jessica will share how she develops, builds and sustains trust whilst adapting to the variabilities around her. The only constant we have in life is that change and trust are necessary for growth and sustainable success. Are you ready?
It’s Not What You See But How You Choose to See It
Leadership and Team Work
As an elite performer Jessica’s success is underpinned by the guides that support her to compete, not unlike a manager working with a team. The ever changing dynamics of leadership and team work when coupled with complexity and risk is real and profound regardless of the environment. In order to succeed it’s critical leader’s get it right. In this keynote Jessica shares the lessons she has learnt in developing her ability to interchange between being led, leading others and the impact of when it goes wrong (and how to stop it from going wrong!)
The Agile Mind
Safety, Risk and Overcoming Fear
How do you remain agile at the time when risk and fear strikes? As a high performance athlete in the dangerous world of Alpine Skiing Jessica shares the practical ways she shaped her risk appetite and turned fear into a must have component of her mindset, skill and performances. It’s easier than you might think to create a positive, empowered mindset to ensure you achieve your goals.
Making the Time to Live Better
Health and Wellness
In our fast paced, complex lives it’s easy to lose sight of looking after your greatest asset, you. As an Osteopath Jess is asked the ultimate question on a weekly basis, how can I gain work/ life balance? In this keynote Jess will help you see health and wellbeing from a new perspective, share her personal stories of overcoming adversity and give you the tips and tools she has used to create positive and sustainable habits to live your best life. How will you make the time to live better?
