Josh Dueck

3X Paralympic medallist, Canada's Beijing 2022 Paralympics Chef de Mission, Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame Inductee

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Josh Dueck

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From humble beginnings in a small mountain town to casually sitting on top of every major podium, from the Paralympics to the X Games, this story of triumph through tragedy is anything but conventional. Inspired by a generation of mountain enthusiasts before him, it became clear to Josh from an early age that he would dedicate his life to the sport he loved, freestyle skiing. After a tragic accident on skis in 2004 Josh was given a choice; wallow in misery or shift his perception of how one can move through the mountains.

In February 2012, he shot to international acclaim when he went upside-down and became the first sit-skier to complete a backflip on snow – earning him worldwide notoriety and an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Josh solidified himself as one of the sports greats with a double-medal performance at the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games: he took gold in the super combined and silver in the downhill, and was named Canada’s flag bearer for the Closing Ceremony. These medals were added to his silver in slalom from the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.

Together with his wife, inspired by the works of those before him, Josh and Lacey strive to redefine the rehabilitation process for those living with life altering injury. A blended approach to mentorship; one part empowerment through adventure aligned with experiential learning grounded in mindfulness techniques and yoga.

Josh is a passionate, unconventional and widely celebrated keynote speaker. His raw approach to sharing stories is refreshing and takes you through the natural cadence of life, exploring the peaks and valleys of the human experience. His incredible success in sport and life has inspired him to explore the depth of his own humanity, which he shares with grace and humility.

Team Canada Paralympics Chef de Mission, Beijing 2022
Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame, Class of 2019
BC Sports Hall of Fame, Class of 2018
2014 Paralympic Gold Medalist
Team Canada Flag Bearer, Sochi 2014
2014 and 2010 Paralympic Silver Medalist
2012 National Geographic Adventurer of the Year
2012 X Games Bronze Medalist
2011 X Games Gold Medalist
Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Recipient
First person to perform a backflip on a sit-ski

Passion + Perseverance = Potential

Passion + Perseverance = Potential

Josh’s raw approach to sharing stories is refreshing and takes you through the natural cadence of life, exploring the peaks and valleys of the human experience.

His incredible success in sport has inspired him to explore the depth of his own humanity, which he shares with grace and humility. His candid observations will have you on the edge of your seat and the cusp of tears.

Passion + Perseverance = Potential

Josh’s raw approach to sharing stories is refreshing and takes you through the natural cadence of life, exploring the peaks and valleys of the human experience.

His incredible success in sport has inspired him to explore the depth of his own humanity, which he shares with grace and humility. His candid observations will have you on the edge of your seat and the cusp of tears.

Testimonials

"It was an absolutely pleasure to hear you speak this afternoon. Thank you so much for spending the time with us and bringing us into and along with you on what has been a remarkable journey. What I hoped for this afternoon was for our staff to understand the importance of the work they do, and the importance of understanding the difficult and very often tragic events that bring our clients through our front door. And my, did you ever deliver. I overheard someone commenting to you that one of the most powerful messages you gave her was the importance of providing our clients with hope, and that she will take this into every conversation she has with injured workers in the future. I also overheard that 'that was the best talk I have had in a professional setting, ever.' I could not agree more. Thank you so much for spending time with us."

Workers’ Advisers Office
"We asked Josh to speak at our Managers conference, our first time ever bringing a speaker in. Leading up to the meetings, Josh was excellent to deal with and tailored his message to maximize impact with our audience. Josh’s story is truly amazing, inspiring and motivating. He is an excellent storyteller that completely engages the audience as they were hanging onto his every word. What our managers took away from his story would be hard to duplicate in any other way. Thank you for making our meeting an overwhelming success!!"

CEO, Toyota Canada
"Josh Dueck is a champion in two respects. He has been victorious at the highest level of sport. Beyond that, he champions the belief that sport can have a tremendous impact on a person's life. He is courageous, inspirational and exceptionally talented. Josh Dueck is also a human being who understands the power of the competitive spirit. He is a leader who champions the potential which exists in all of us."

Scott Russell, CBC Host, Olympics/Paralympics
“Dear Josh: Thank you for the outstanding job you did as Keynote Speaker at our 2015 Conference . Your presentation was highly engaging and truly inspirational. The feedback from the conference attendees was very positive, and your post-conference survey score indicates that you were our top rated Keynote Speaker of the past 5 years."

David Lynn, President & CEO, Canada West Ski Areas Association
"On January 18, 2018 Josh Dueck was our featured keynote speaker at Do You Believe in Magic? a gala dinner at SilverStar Mountain Resort. The event was sponsored by the non-profit Silver Star Dreamweavers Society to raise funds for Silver Star Fire and Rescue. Josh held the audience of 200 spellbound with his personal inspirational story, the value of the Silver Star community and positive messages for the future. His relaxed and confident manner, along with the warmth of his personality, combined to create a wonderful presentation in which he interacted with and formed a connection with the audience. He was extremely easy to work with and generous with his time to speak with people before and after his presentation. I have also enjoyed watching Josh hold large theatre audiences spellbound as he MC’d various events at the Banff Mountain Book and Film Festival over the years. His sense of humour and knowledge of outdoor pursuits make him a good choice for any mountain themed event. I would welcome the chance to work with Josh any time in the future."

Patti Lefkos, Communications Chair, Silver Star Dreamweavers Society
"WorkSafeBC has been honoured to have Josh as part of our Speakers Network. Josh has presented 129 times for a total of over 8,000 people. Josh has received rave reviews for all of his school presentations."

Dave Anderson, President & CEO, WorkSafeBC
"I just wanted to say how much Josh's story was an inspiration to kids my age. His story has inspired me to follow my dreams and to never give up no matter what challenges come up."

Student, Westbank, BC
"Josh is a wonderful speaker. I see him every chance I get. It was so nice of him to share his [Paralympic] medals from Sochi."

Employee, WorkSafeBC
"Josh was generous with his time and was a pleasure to work with before and during the conference. His genuine interest in the success of our event and the overall professionalism that he brought to the table was truly appreciated. As evidence of his impact on the audience, after his speech there was a long line-up of folks seeking to spend a personal moment with Josh for a picture or just to shake his hand and say thanks."

Paul Gardner, Senior Vice President Human Resources, SUNCOR ENERGY INC.