Christine Sinclair, champion on and off the pitch, to deliver 2025 Knight Lecture
Christine Sinclair, the most prolific goal scorer in international soccer history, began her journey in Burnaby, BC, playing on a team of 6-year-olds as a shy 4-year-old who often felt overwhelmed and cried on the sidelines. But, as she recalls in her memoir Playing the Long Game, she kept playing, and her team went undefeated for five years.
Today, she is one of the most decorated athletes, with over 300 international matches for Team Canada and a successful stint with the Portland Thorns. She will share stories and insights from her life on and off the field as this year’s Distinguished Knight Lecturer at the University of Manitoba.
Though experienced with media interviews, her humility makes public appearances rare, making this event all the more special. Part of UM’s International Women’s Day celebrations, this lecture is supported by the R.G. and E.M. Knight Fund, which brings visionary leaders to our campus to inspire and challenge us. Sinclair will recount her rise to soccer stardom, sharing the teamwork, passion, and resilience it took to succeed, along with the barriers she’s faced and her vision for a more inclusive future.
Soccer was not her first love. It was baseball. She was convinced she’d play for her beloved Toronto Blue Jays and replace Robbie Alomar at second base—the reason she has always worn jersey number 12, Alomar’s number.
Today, looking back, she is upset by how few female athletes she had to look up to. Eventually, she became aware of some, but “when I was little, there was no obvious role models and no obvious career paths in women’s sports,” she writes. That’s why she thought she’d play for the Jays. There seemed no other options.
Today, Sinclair is an inspiration to countless people. She is an Officer of the Order of Canada, a member of Canada’s Walk of Fame. She was named Team Canada’s Player of the Decade, and Soccer Canada’s Female Player of the Year—an honor she won 14 times. She has appeared in five World Cups and is a five-time Olympian who led her team to gold and two bronze medals. Off the field, “Sinc,” as teammates call her, is an ambassador for the MS Society of Canada and an advocate for gender equality.
About the event
The Knight Lecture is one of UM’s most prestigious lecture programs intended to enrich academic life and discourse by inviting great thinkers and leaders to our campus to challenge our perceptions.
The event will be emceed and moderated by Dayna Spiring [BA/98; LLB/01]. Spiring has a strong connection to Winnipeg sports and the champion mindset Sinclair will speak to. She is the first woman to have her name engraved on the CFL’s Grey Cup, and was the first woman to chair the CFL’s Board of Governors.
What: The 2024 Distinguished Knight Lecture with Christine Sinclair, followed by a Q&A
When: March 11, 2025, from 2 – 3:30 p.m. Doors open at 1:30.
Where: The Desautels Concert Hall, Fort Garry campus, 150 Dafoe Rd
UPDATE: There has been very strong interest in this event and it is now sold out. You can join the wait list here.