Keynote Speaker
We are excited to announce our Keynote Speaker this year will be Diana Nyad!
Diana Nyad
World Champion Athlete, World Renowned Inspirational Speaker and Author
25 million people worldwide rooted for Diana Nyad as she reached the Florida shore, at long last achieving her 35-year-old quest of becoming the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida. A prominent sports journalist, filing over thirty years for National Public Radio, The New York Times and others, Diana has earned her place as one of our compelling storytellers.
Her memoir, Find a Way, has earned worldwide praise. Her groundbreaking Op Ed piece on her childhood sexual abuse for The New York Times drew a passionate response from around the world.
Also a uniquely entertaining and inspiring public speaker, Diana has now fulfilled another lifelong dream, bringing her performance of her play “The Swimmer” to the storied off-Broadway Minetta Lane Theater. The show played to sold-out crowds September, 2019.
Diana has been inducted into the International Women’s Sports Hall of Fame, the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame, among other Halls of Fame and awards of distinction. President Obama invited Diana to congratulate her in the Oval Office and then asked her to accompany him on his peace visit to Havana in 2014. Oprah Winfrey chose Diana’s interview for her Super Soul Sunday broadcast to be the first to extend to two hours.
Diana has written four books and speaks three foreign languages fluently. “NYAD”, a feature film based on Diana’s life, was released in Fall 2023 starring Annette Bening, Jodie Foster, and directed by Academy Award winners Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi (Free Solo).