Alyson Annan: The 3 Questions Parents Need to Ask After Sport from a Dual Olympic Champion

On this episode of Empowering Leaders, Luke Darcy sits down with one of the greatest figures in world hockey, dual Olympic gold medallist and champion coach Alyson Annan. Alyson reflects on her journey from superstar player to leading the Dutch and now Chinese women's national teams, and why she never once thought of herself as "the best in the world" - even though she was! She shares the deceptively simple goals that drove her playing career, and how curiosity has become the secret to sustaining performance over decades. Luke and Alyson explore what high-performance sport can teach business about recovery, emotional connection and celebrating success, and why leaders should spend more time observing their people rather than filling every moment with instruction. Alyson also opens up about growing up fast, parenting in youth sport, and why learning Chinese has transformed her understanding of communication and trust. Alyson delivers a masterclass in leadership, language and humility as one of the most respected coaches in global sport. You'll hear Alyson mention the legendary Emma Hayes: Listen or relisted to Luke's episode with Emma Hayes here: Emma Hayes LIVE from London: For Women, By Women, Football & Beyond We are privileged to have Alyson as part of our Aleda Connect community. Book a discovery call today to find out more about how you can learn and grow alongside people like Alyson within our signature leadership program. Learn. Lead. Collaborate. Start your leadership journey today. Head here to find out more about our signature, cross industry collaboration program, Aleda Connect. Curated and facilitated by experts, running for 8 fortnightly sessions, Aleda Connect is the learning experience of a life-time. Book a discovery call today. Empowering Leaders is proudly partnered with Victoria University. Find more information about studying at VU here .

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Alyson Annan: The 3 Questions Parents Need to Ask After Sport from a Dual Olympic Champion is an episode from Empowering Leaders by Lauren Exton.

This episode is 41:07 long.

This episode was published on Dec 16, 2025.

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