Karen Pickering MBE

Karen Pickering is the most decorated female British swimmer and her achievements are quite remarkable.

Karen made her international debut in 1986 and went on to win an incredible 73 titles on the national and international stages. She was four times World Champion, won 14 European Championship medals, 38 British Championship titles and 13 Commonwealth Games medals including 4 Golds. The 2002 Commonwealth Games saw Karen gain two gold and a silver medal in front of her home crowd, a career highlight that was crowned when she was given the honour of carrying the English flag at the closing ceremony.

Since her retirement from international swimming in 2005, Karen has become regular member of the BBC Radio 5 Live commentary team and has taken on a number of roles. She is Chair of the British Athletes Commission, and is on the executive board of the English Institute of Sport, the BOA-Athletes Commission and LOCOG's Athletes Commission.

Karen runs her own swim foundation, KP Swim, which uses her skills both as a world class swimmer and also a business woman.

Karen Pickering is a very accomplished after dinner and motivational speaker. Drawing on a vast career, Karen is able to deliver messages drawing parallels between the sporting and business worlds.

She understands the importance of a balance between individual and team performance and is able to adapt presentations to suit client’s needs. A humorous, poignant and inspirational speaker, Karen’s views will motivate and inspire any audience.

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