British Paralympic gold medallist rower
Rowing is a sport which, perhaps more than any other, looks easy when executed perfectly. Spectators watch a boat gliding effortlessly through the water, with all members of the crew in complete harmony of rhythm, stroke, commitment, and the desire to win. But, behind the scenes, each team member spends thousands of hours in training, both individually and with their team mates. Before each race, the coach selects the members of the crew for that boat, in that race, on that day. If everything goes as planned, a gold medal is the prize on the world’s biggest sporting stage.
Naomi Riches never expected to be a rower, let alone a gold medallist. Labelled as “disabled” at 8 weeks old due to a severe visual impairment, the “little blind girl” was conditioned to no support, low expectations and not achieving much. Unsurprisingly, being bullied at school led to very low self-esteem and indifferent exam results. But this young woman had a very strong desire to prove everyone wrong. She didn’t want to be defined by what other people saw as her impairment.
She swam for the local disabled swimming team, but had little other interest in sport. In 2004, she was offered the opportunity to join the GB Adaptive Rowing Team. Finally, Naomi found her niche – a sport where her determination, commitment, physical and mental ability (not disability) and her ability to work with other people were all valued.
Within 4 months of being selected, she became World Champion in the Mixed Coxed Four. She later won 5 more World Championships, and the Paralympic Bronze medal in 2008. In 2012, Naomi won Gold at the Paralympics in London. She was made an MBE. A more obvious, and permanent, reminder of her incredible achievement in the post box which was (and still is) painted gold in her home town.
Warm, engaging, friendly, and communicative, Naomi still rows competitively for her local rowing club and turns up at training sessions in the very early hours of the morning to support and encourage other rowers and crew mates.
As former Chair of the world-famous Henley Women’s Regatta, Naomi Riches is internationally respected. In 2016, she set the Guinness World Record, for rowing the length of the Navigable Thames… (!) In 2023, Naomi had the honour of being appointed a deputy Lieutenant (DL) in the County of Buckinghamshire.
Her topics include teamwork, resilience, setting and achieving goals, diversity and inclusion, motivation and inspiration (of one-self and others), and the Paralympics in London 2012. Each speech is adapted and tailored to each audience, and she enjoys taking time to work with each client, striving to ensure that relevant and messages are communicated effectively and in an engaging way. She shows people how her story, and the experiences she gained, can be applied to their businesses, their teams, their careers, and their own lives.
From November 2023, her new presentation All that Glitters invites her audience behind the scenes to see what is really needed to achieve sporting excellence – not just the highs, but how to keep going, when the going gets tough.
As a professional speaker, Naomi’s decade of experience and her outstanding communication skills combine with her open and honest style, her natural authenticity, and her genuine passion to support and inspire others.