A true sporting star and Leicester Tigers legend, Derek Jelley was born in Nuneaton and educated at Heathfield High School, Earl Shilton. Prior to joining the Tigers in 1993, Derek played for Market Bosworth rugby club before joining the professional ranks. His debut match for Tigers in 1993 saw him break his collarbone after just 16 minutes of play. This injury did little to halt his career and he went on to make 141 appearances for Tigers as a prop.
Derek held the record for the 1999 season for 35 appearances, a remarkable achievement considering he was competing for the loosehead position with Graham Rowntree. Derek is ideal for travelling to schools and colleges to give motivational speeches and advice on how to make ambitions a reality.
One of the most entertaining rugby speakers, Derek’s record of playing for the Tigers for 10 years, winning 5 premiership titles and 2 European cups makes him the ideal personality to speak about peak performance and maximising success. A serious injury finally ruled Derek out of the game at the age of 31. Derek is one of the best known faces at the Leicester Tigers and he has played host to the executive 1886 Suite since 2004. Derek’s experience in this role makes him an ideal personality to host your very own event.
His unique experiences and undeniable charm and good humour make him a formidable motivational speaker, enthusing audiences with his own success stories. He also entertains audiences with his own experiences as a professional rugby player. Having played for 10 years with one of rugby union’s best sides, his unique take on the sporting world provides a fascinating story for a wide range of occasions.
How to hire Derek Jelley
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Derek Jelley for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do not accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
When at corporate events, Derek is known to cover the following topics:
- Rugby Speaker
- Sports Speaker
- Motivational Speaker
- Maximising Success
- Achieving Goals
- Event Host
"Derek was well received. He kept his audience engaged for the whole hour and his talk was really interesting. From our evaluation forms for the whole day he received 'excellent' or 'good' for his contribution, so very positive. Derek was very charming and was a pleasure to work with." - Julie, Somerset Association of Secondary school
