In this episode, I chat with former teammate and Team Canada athlete Jellisa Westney.

Jellisa is a Pan American Games Bronze medalist in the 4×100-metre, NACAC Bronze medallist in the 4x100m, Pan American U20 Championships Bronze medallist, two-time All-American in the women’s 4x100m, Canadian Junior Nationals Championships medalist, OFSAA medalist, and Academic All-Big Ten recipient. Jellisa graduated from St. Benedict C.S.S. before attending Michigan State University on scholarship where she majored in interdisciplinary studies in social science. She is currently completing her master's degree at the University of Toronto.

Jellisa credits her career in athletics for teaching her the invaluable role of mental health and wellness on the journey to success. Jellisa is also passionate about empowering youth to inspire others to pursue their dreams, build resilience, and achieve their goals through lifelong learning.

You can connect with Jellisa on Instagram here.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, TEDx Speaker, and creator/ host of The Inner Olympian podcast. Connect with Segun online via ⁠LinkedIn⁠, ⁠Facebook⁠, ⁠Twitter⁠, and ⁠Instagram⁠. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on ⁠Instagram⁠ or online at ⁠www.theinnerolympian.com

Jessica Myers-Adams is a marriage/relationship expert with eight years of experience working with couples to recreate joy and connection in their relationship. With Extreme Relationship Fitness, which launched in 2020, Jessica hones in on athletes to equip them with the tools to better communicate with their partners for mutual understanding, foster “mental toughness,” and create a safe environment for the guilt-free pursuit of their athletic passions. Outside of working individually with athletes and running Relationship Boot Camps for couples, Jessica can be found training for endurance events or cooking up her next big adventure with her wife of 10 years. She is based in Harrisburg, PA and accepts clients both virtually and in person.

In this episode, we chat about being not being afraid to ask for help, some of the things that trips us up in relationships, how to take ownership of ourselves in our relationships and of course, much much more.

To connect with Jessica, you can check out her website www.extremerelationshipfitness.com or send her an email at [email protected].

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, TEDx Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, and creator/ host of The Inner Olympian podcast. Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit The Inner Olympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

Shannon is a current skeleton athlete and former softball athlete, with an extremely diverse background in sport, education, research, and marketing. She holds a M.A. in Olympic Studies from the German Sport University in Cologne, an undergraduate degree from McMaster University, a B.Ed from the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT), and a diploma in Sport Business Management from Durham College. She is proud to be giving back to her sport by continuously working closely with developing junior elite athletes across Ontario through pitching clinics and player development camps.

As a dual-citizen to Malta, she managed to become a builder of sport through development strategies for local sport organizations within Malta and took part in the European Commission’s “Be Active” campaign to promote healthy active living across European communities. With the role of Game Plan Specialist, Shannon is proud to be supporting a world-class program that aims to help athletes find their passions beyond the field of play as well-rounded individuals while maintaining a healthy balance in their high-performance career.

In this episode, we chat about being relentlessly persistent, taking risks, not settling for less, going after what you want, and so much more. 

To connect with Shannon, you can follow her on Instagram @sgalea88, or Twitter @shannongalea.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, TEDx Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, and creator/ host of TheInnerOlympian podcast. Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode sit down with 2x Canadian Olympian, and 4x All American Richard Adu-Bobie. Richard Adu-Bobie is a former Canadian 100m sprinter and was a member of Canada’s 4x100m relay team at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2004 he was the youngest member of the Canadian track and field team at the age of 19 when he finished 4th at the Canadian Olympic trials setting a then new Canadian Junior record of 10.28s

In 2005, Richard went on to start his NCAA collegiate career at the University of Florida, where he finished third in the 60m dash as a Freshmen at the 2005 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. In the Fall of 2006, Richard transferred to Texas A&M University where his NCAA career really took off earning multiple All-American, ALL SEC, and all Big athlete honours.

Internationally Richard has represented Canada at the 2005 and 2007 IAAF World Championships and is a silver medalist from the 2007 Pan American Games where he ran the lead-off leg. In 2008, he was selected to represent Canada at his second Olympic Games at the 2008 Beijing, Olympics as an alternate for the 4x100m relay.

After eight years running for the National team, he made the decision to retire after missing out on his third Olympic Games in 2012. Soon after retirement, Richard began working for Employment and Social Development Canada where he is currently a Senior Business Consultant providing grant and contributions guidance on various government of Canada funding programs.

In this episode, we chat about Richard's journey to his first Olympic team taking care of the little things not being afraid to take on challenges how to identify if your feeling stuck And the biggest thing he’s learned since retiring from the sport.

To connect with Richard, you can follow him on Instagram @radubobie, or Twitter @richardadubobie.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, TEDx Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, and creator/ host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode I chat with visual artist and photographer Toni Lovejoy. Toni is a full-time visual artist based in Charlotte, NC. Raised by a renowned American Western Artist and educated at the Colorado Institute of Art, she’s been creating images for over 30 years. She began her career as a photojournalist in Iowa photographing sports, moving on to fashion and editorial work in Australia in the 80's. After moving back to the States to continue her fashion work, she spent a year interning in a fashion studio before beginning to work in the film and commercial world in Phoenix and LA. In 2008 Lovejoy made the switch from film to digital and began exploring fine art photography full-time.

In this episode we chat about defining success for yourself, navigating self-sabotage, dealing with fear and insecurity, learning from mistakes, determining your true vs magnetic North, things she'd like to do again, and so much more. This conversation is DEEP. You won't want to miss it. 

To connect with Toni, you can follow her on Instagram @mynameis.lovejoy, Clubhouse @mynameislovejoy, and Facebook. You can also check out her website www.mynameislovejoy.com.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, TEDx Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, and creator/ host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode, I chat with Canadian sports executive and one of the visionaries behind Toronto FC and the Canadian Premier League, Paul Beirne.

Paul is widely regarded as one of Canada’s leading soccer executives and was one of the visionaries behind Toronto FC and the Canadian Premier League. He is the former Vice-President of Business Operations for Toronto FC, as well as the former President of the Canadian Premier League, and has also held senior executive, and leadership roles with the Raptors, Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, and the Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club in the UK. Paul spent seven seasons with Toronto FC before leaving in 2013 with some highlights including being part of the local organizing committee for the 2007 FIFA Under-20 World Cup, the opening of BMO Field, and bringing football giant, Real Madrid to Toronto. Most recently, he oversaw the founding and operations for the successful launch of the Canadian Premier League in 2019.

In 2007, Paul was honoured by Major League Soccer with the prestigious Doug Hamilton Executive of the Year Award in recognition of his innovative work on Toronto FC’s ground-breaking launch as the league’s first Canadian franchise.

In this episode we chat about how Paul got into the business side of sports, his experiences/ learnings with Toronto FC, the one thing that he would go back and tell himself, and the power of sport as more than just sport, but rather a tool for positive change and impact in communities and the world. This was a really great conversation. 

To connect with Paul, you can follow him on Twitter @Paulbeirne.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, TEDx Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, and creator/ host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode, I chat with Canadian Olympian, 2008 Bronze medalist, and current Director, Communications and Media Relations for the COC (Canadian Olympic Committee) Tom Hall. Tom is a Canadian Olympian from Pointe-Claire, Québec, and represented Team Canada as a national sprint canoe paddler for almost 20 years. During his career As a sprint canoe athlete, he medalled at every international event that featured sprint canoeing. His career culminated with a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics games in Beijing before retiring from the sport in 2012.

Post sporting career he holds a Masters of Journalism from Carleton University and has a diverse background in marketing and communications with work that has been featured in many reputed media outlets such as Canadian Geographic, the Toronto Star, the Ottawa Citizen, and the National Post. Tom is also a respected leader in the Canadian sport system and has worked for a decade to make the Canadian athlete journey as safe, fair, and healthy as possible. First as a volunteer, and more recently as a leader within athlete-focused organizations. He has held previous roles as the Executive Director of AthletesCAN, National Manager of Game Plan, and is currently the Director, Communications and Media Relations for the Canadian Olympic Committee. He currently sits on the Board of Directors of Canoe Kayak Canada, the Sport Information Resource Centre (SIRC), as well as the IOC Athlete365 Career+ Steering Committee.

In this episode we chat about his Olympics experiences, dealing with uncertainty, career transitions, not taking things for granted, the Canadian sports system, athlete mental health, asking yourself the tough questions, overcoming insecurity, and of course much more!

To connect with Tom, you can check out his website www.tomhall.ca, or follow him on Twitter @tomhallca.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, Keynote Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, producer, and host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode, I chat with 3x Canadian Olympian, and 100m hurdler/ heptathlete, Angela Whyte. Angela is a 3x Canadian Olympian (2004, 2008, 2016), 5x International Medalist, 2x World Championship finalist, 4x All-American, 5x Big West Champion, and is one of the top Canadian hurdlers of all-time.

Angela was raised in Edmonton, Alberta, and had dreams of playing professional basketball before switching to track and field in high school. She left Alberta after accepting an offer to New Mexico the States, but It wasn't until she transferred to the University of Idaho that her career really started to take off. Her two years at Idaho saw her become a 4x All-American, 5x Big west champion, and 13x school record holder. She made her major Canadian Senior team debut at the IAAF World Championships in Edmonton and has since been to 3 Olympic Games, multiple world championships, commonwealth, and Pan-American games. Currently, she holds a Master's degree from the University of Idaho and is training to represent Canada at what would be her 4th Olympics at the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo. 

In this episode, we chat about, Taking risks, having confidence in yourself, finding value in what you do, her Olympic experiences, getting through doubt, the gift and curse of experience, overcoming struggles, and the one big lesson she’s learned over her career so far!

To connect with Angela, you can give her a follow on Instagram @angelawhyte_can or on Twitter @AngelaWhyteCan.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, Keynote Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, producer, and host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode, I chat with 2x Canadian Olympian (2008, 2012), 3x International Medalist, and 3x World Championship finalist in the 4x100 Jared Connaughton. Jared Connaughton was raised in Prince Edward Island and played hockey and soccer competitively for nearly a decade before he embarked on his mission to pursue the sport of track and field. After only a few months of training, he became the nation's premier (u-19) 200m athlete garnering attention from a multitude of NCAA Division-1 universities before ultimately deciding on the University of Texas-Arlington. During his time there he went on to become one of the most decorated athletes in the history of the southland conference... even being named as one of the top 50 greatest Southland Conference track and field athletes. He is the Maritime record holder 100m,200m, 4 x 100m (38.08), and 4 x 200m; and the only Islander in history to win 2 gold medals at the Canada Games. He is also a Three-time P.E.I. Lieutenant-Governor’s Award winner, Halfpenny Award winner, Queen’s Silver Jubilee medal recipient, and Multiple P.E.I. sports award winner. Jared currently lives in Texas with his wife and two kids, and is the Head Track & Field and Cross-Country coach at Fort Worth Country Day. 

In this episode, we chat about, 

To connect with Jared, you can give him a follow on Instagram @jared.connaughton.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, Keynote Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, producer, and host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com

In this episode, I chat with 2016 Candian Olympian, Jessica O’Connell. Jessica is 2019 NACAC cross country silver medalist, 2019 Pan Am Silver Medalist, 2017 FISU Games silver medalist, 17 times National championship medalist, 18x National team member, the Canadian indoor record holder in the 3,000m, Athlete Ambassador for Fast and Female, and as I mentioned a 2016 Olympian in the 5,000m. She holds an undergraduate degree from West Virginia University and a Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology from the University of Calgary, and is an accredited exercise physiologist, holding the CSEP-CEP certification. Outside of sport, she is the co-founder of Grit coaching. A coaching business that specializes in custom cross-training programs for runners and athletes.

In this episode we chat about her journey to the 2016 Olympic games, dealing with injuries, mindset, identity, appreciating the struggle, and much more!

To connect with Jessica, you can send her a message and give her a follow on Instagram @jessmoconnell or @grit_coaching. You can also check out Grit coaching at www.gritcoaching.net.

About Segun: Segun is a 2x Canadian Olympian, 3x International medalist, Keynote Speaker, AthletesCAN Ambassador, Christie Lake Kids Ambassador, producer, and host of TheInnerOlympian podcast.

Connect with Segun online via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also visit TheInnerOlympian on Instagram or online at www.theinnerolympian.com