Caster Semenya recently sat down for a powerful conversation and the chance to share powerful lessons at Harvard, where she was a keynote speaker for the globally acclaimed Women in Power Conference!
Global (15 April 2025) — South African sports legend Caster Semenya recently made her way to Harvard University for the kind of experience she described as a dream turned to reality.
Last weekend, the Olympic Gold Medalist was a part of the globally acclaimed Harvard Kennedy School’s annual Women in Power Conference. Here, the athlete proudly took the stage as a keynote speaker—another feather in her cap that solidifies her as not only a champion, but a leader to look up to and learn from.
Caster—who is no stranger to reimagining power or building legacies—was more than an apt choice of speaker and lesson sharer under the theme of the Conference: ‘Reimagining Power: Building a New Legacy’.
There, important conversations were had to do with a more inclusive landscape across different silos of influence, including sport.
Flame Bearers described Caster’s talk alongside fellow Olympian, fencer Lauren Scruggs, beautifully, as follows:
“[It was a] powerful fireside chat on resilience, identity, and what it means to lead with purpose, even when the world tells you to sit down. Caster’s story reminded us that breaking records is one thing. Breaking barriers? That’s legacy.”
Seeing a South African lead such important conversations in places where the world listens is its own kind of gold medal for all of us back home. As Caster adds, this experience is a reminder that anything is possible.
In terms of failure, the powerhouse also shared wise words on overcoming them:
“You never let your failures define your destination,” Caster shared—food for thought we can all take with us on the long road to our own dreams.
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