MTC

Leon Taylor was regarded as one of the world's top platform divers.  His passion for everything he does has helped him achieve sustained success at the highest level, winning medals at all major championships.  Considered a feat in itself for such a physically punishing sport, his career lasted more than 20 years and his successes brought diving to the attention of the British public.  He participated at 3 Olympic Games and was a member of the Great Britain team for 16 years.

He is acknowledged within the sport for pushing the boundaries of what's possible. His invention of "the world's most difficult dive" - backward 2.5 summersaults with 2.5 twists in the piked position (also known as the rather understated 5255b) is a legacy that will live long in the annuls of platform diving history.

Training in the pre-lottery funding era in a minority sport brought its challenges but recovering from two separate shoulder surgeries, Leon Taylor won a silver medal at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester and then in the Athens Olympics of 2004, he fulfilled a life-time ambition with his diving partner Peter Waterfield, when they secured Britain's first medal in the sport for 44 years and the first silver medal in 84 years.  This honour led to additional investment in the sport and the development of a new crop of British talent. The pair followed this up the following year at the 2005 World Championships with a bronze medal.

Since then Leon Taylor has faced his hardest competition against a succession of injuries.  His role of honour is matched in length by a catalogue of injuries that finally forced the 30-year-old into retirement less than three months out from realising another Olympic dream in Beijing.

The disappointment of being unable to travel to Beijing as an athlete was tempered somewhat by being signed up by the BBC for their coverage of the 2008 Games.  Leon commentated on the diving events and was a reporter and pundit for the general Olympic coverage.  Since his return from Beijing Leon has continued his support of British diving through his role as 'Athlete mentor' and will be throwing himself back into the corporate speaking circuit.  He is keen to pursue a career on screen and to date has appeared on Sportsround BBC, 4Sport Ch4 and filmed a show with Justin Lee Collins for Sky.

Leon Taylor is part of Team B & Q, partner of the British Olympic Association.

MOTIVATIONAL / INSPIRATIONAL SPEAKER 
CONFERENCE FACILITATOR
CORPORATE / AWARDS HOST

To view Leon Taylor's corporate showreel, click on the video tab

Leon Taylor's passion for everything he does has helped him achieve sustained success at the highest level.  Considered a feat in itself for such a physically punishing sport, his career lasted more than 20 years and his successes brought diving to the attention of the British public.  He participated at 3 Olympic Games and was a member of the Great Britain team for 16 years, winning medals at all major championships.

Training in the pre-lottery funding era in a minority sport brought its challenges but recovering from two separate shoulder surgeries, Leon won a silver medal at the 2002 Commonwealth Games and then in the Athens Olympics of 2004, he fulfilled a life-time ambition with his diving partner Peter Waterfield, when they secured Britain's first medal in the sport for 44 years and the first silver medal in 84 years.  This honour led to additional investment in the sport and the development of a new crop of British talent.

He is acknowledged within the sport for pushing the boundaries of what's possible. His invention of "the world's most difficult dive" - backward 2.5 summersaults with 2.5 twists in the piked position (also known as the rather understated 5255b) is a legacy that will live long after his competitive days are over.

An experienced speaker to a variety of audiences from business leaders to school children, his inspiring and entertaining message has been enjoyed by thousands of people.

Style:

Leon has a perfect balance of clear and controlled messaging fuelled with energy and enthusiasm.

 Content:

His insight into what it's like to stand on your tip toes, on the edge of a board, 10 meters above the water is quite something. In his long career as a platform diver, he has had many twists and turns, injuries and set backs to deal with as well as the successes. It has been a very exciting journey along the way and he has many a story to tell

Leon has an infectious passion and enthusiasm for the lessons he learnt during his sporting career. As a result he has been asked to speak at a wide range of events. Achieving success at the highest level in such a physically and mentally demanding sport has provided Leon with enough challenges, interesting insights and stories to truly bring his inspirational message to life.

Dedicated to making sure that the content of his presentations is as relevant as possible, Leon works hard with clients to tailor his speeches to engage and inspire a variety of audiences.

Testimonials:

"An uplifting and motivational address which inspired the audience..." to challenge their own perceptions of what's achievable through a combination of clear goal setting, hard work and determination...Leon's presentation was one of the high points of a very successful conference"
Adrian Bryant, Royal Bank of Scotland Cards

"I am writing to you to express my thanks for your motivational speech that you gave recently in Dublin . The members of Million Dollar Round Table and the LIA in Ireland are a well motivated bunch of people anyway, so for you to get the attendees excited and motivated is a reflection of the quality of your speech and the presentation of it. It was done with a natural flair that involved what was obviously a lot of preparation and professionalism.
To any one reading this who wants to know if Leon is suitable as a speaker I want to recommend him highly as he undertakes the task of speaking to an audience as if he is 10 meters above them about to take the most important dive of his career and he did it with ease. He is a professional, a courteous and most of all a nice person to deal with. He would receive a perfect 10 from this judge."
Padriac Kissane, MDRT Chair Ireland

"I am delighted to provide a testimonial for Leon Taylor. Leon is an excellent ambassador for his sport. He has natural inter-personal skills and an aptitude for communicating the realities of life as an elite performer. He is at ease with well-informed audiences and also has an ability to distil and disseminate technical knowledge in a manner that offers the lay person an insight into his world. He is the embodiment of an impressive young champion."
Wilma Shakespear, National Director, English Institute of Sport

"Leon Taylor was a breath of fresh air when he spoke recently at our Conference. He told with real and unaffected excitement about winning the Silver Medal at the Athens Olympics, outlined the tough regime and mental determination needed for success at the highest levels and relished sharing insider information and celebrity sightings from the Olympic Village.
Leon 's delivery was pitched exactly right for the audience and occasion and he charmed his listeners with a smile and a light touch of humour. We would definitely recommend him as an inspirational speaker for 6th Form students and an amusing raconteur for adults."
Eve Pennell , International Round Table committee chair

"A charming and entertaining speaker. Leon had a great ability to communicate with all the captive members of the audience. A real asset to the evening. Thank you."
Wendy Ellis, Head at Windermere St. Anne's

"Leon has proven to be a popular and inspirational speaker. He has spoken at several Business Link events throughout 2006, each receiving a great deal of praise from the delegates. Comments included, ‘Leon was an excellent presenter... He was a positive and inspirational person.' ‘Leon's delivery was excellent'.
Leon's story is incredibly motivational and entertaining, he gives a great insight into what it is like to participate in the Olympics and how to succeed when faced with obstacles."
Kirsten Bolton , Marketing and PR Manager, Business Link South Yorkshire