JENNIFER HEIL
“Leadership comes in all forms—know your strengths and remain true to your own style in any environment you enter.”
Meet Jennifer Heil, CEO and Co-Founder of RYA Health, and 2 time Olympian in freestyle skiing. Her mission is to build. From medal-winning athletic performances to large-scale policy initiatives and now a healthtech startup, she is driven to help form a reality that is forward-thinking.
A GOAL TO BECOME AN OLYMPIAN
“At nine years old, I picked up the 1994 Sports Illustrated Olympic Preview magazine. As I flipped through the pages, I was captivated by images of female athletes practicing their sports with determination and grace. In that moment, I decided I would become an Olympian. Next, I had to find a sport.”
THE UNIQUE BACKGROUNDS OF ATHLETES
“I have had key figures who played pivotal roles in my athletic journey. My family instilled in me a profound joy for movement and effort. Coaches and teachers nurtured my dream of becoming an Olympian from the age of nine. Their belief in my potential, along with the constant guidance and support of my B2ten team, elevated my performance, allowing me to achieve consistency on the world stage and write my own story.
I want athletes to know that their unique backgrounds in sport allowed them to build grit and composure that is transferrable to any career pivot - move full speed ahead into your next career and leadership positions!”
OVERHAULING SPORT GOVERNANCE
“I was previously VP of Sport Development at viaSport B.C. and ensuring strong sport governance was our main focus. We led the overhaul of policies to better protect athletes from sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. Involving key stakeholders in the process, we emphasised that policies are living document - the work is never done as the system continues to evolve.
In a lot of places in the world sport is poorly governed. Sport at a high level needs to make a commitment to overhaul their governance structures otherwise decisions will continue to be made that are not in the best interest of the athletes whom these organisations are meant to be serving.”
DIVERSE REPRESENTATION IN SPORT
“Diverse representation starts with policies. As an organisation, you need to set objectives around recruiting and training diverse candidates. It's critical to find ways to reach new types of candidates rather than relying solely on existing channels.”
