Calum Giles

Calum Giles is renowned as an Olympic field hockey player, representing Team GB at the 1996 Atlanta and 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. Playing in a variety of matches, from the Champions Trophy to the World Cup, Calum retired as England’s highest goal scorer with 110 goals in 143 appearances (since overtaken). Today, Calum is a dedicated hockey coach, alongside commitments as an after dinner and motivational speaker. When hired as a speaker, Calum shares insights from his elite sporting career, translating the skills he learned into actionable takeaways for corporate settings.

Back in 1995, Calum made a sensational entrance into the international hockey world. Playing in the 1995 European Cup, he scored an impressive nine goals in seven games, proving instrumental in England securing a bronze medal – in addition to earning the coveted Golden Stick Award, with Calum being the first British player to win this award in a major competition. Widely regarded as one of the best short-corner strikers in the world, Calum’s inspiration was gained from watching the 1984 Olympic Games, and later became a reality when he played in two Olympic Games. Upon his retirement, Calum honed his skills as a player to become a player-coach for Oxted Hockey Club – marking his prominence by helping promote the club to the National League, the first time the club had ever played in this league. 

From then on, Calum continued his success as a coach – returning to his boyhood club as a player-coach for Havant and helping them earn promotion to the Premier League. Later roles such as Director of Coaching at Teddington Hockey Club and lead of the girls’ first team at Kingston Grammar School followed, along with a stint transforming the hockey programme at Eltham College. Most recently, in 2023, Calum was approached to take over the hockey and golf programmes at Worth School – taking the title of Head of Hockey and Master in Charge of Golf at Worth School. In addition to his school coaching, Calum is also the MD of Stickwise, a coaching business that provides hockey camps for players of all ages and abilities. 

Today, when hired as a speaker, Calum shares his life story. Calum’s journey to the top was far from easy, having grown up with undiagnosed ADHD, which caused Calum trouble in the classroom, and education in a non-hockey-playing state school. Despite this adversity, Calum poured all his energy into hockey, triumphing and fulfilling his dreams of playing at the Olympics. Now, as a keynote, motivational and after dinner speaker, Calum shares his experience of elite sport, touching on the Olympic Games and coaching elite teams. In addition to his sporting background, Calum is also a passionate advocate for neurodiversity awareness, delivering powerful speeches on ADHD and the importance of being neurodiverse-inclusive. If you are looking for a speaker or host with an inspirational story and thought-provoking insights, hire Calum Giles today.