Laurence Halsted

Offering a refreshing viewpoint about competitive training, Halsted draws from years of experience to advocate for a transformation in competitive training. After graduating from the University of Sussex, Halsted began to fence competitively with the Lansdowne Club of London. He won a silver medal at the 2008 European Championships and won the British Fencing Championships’ foil title in 2009. By 2016, Halsted placed 22nd overall at the Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, as his team took 6th place when it lost to the eventual gold medalists, Russia, in the competition’s quarterfinals.

By 2017, Halsted relocated to Denmark and worked at the Danish Fencing Federation as Performance Director before becoming a coach and mentor to athletes. Merging his competitive experiences with a new direction in sports training, Halsted has recognized crucial elements to competitive success that athletes often ignore. Reflecting on his social psychology studies and hand-to-hand fencing experience, he’s written a book, Becoming A True Athlete.

His book’s concepts run contrary to the traditional win-at-all-costs philosophy dominating athletic training. Instead, Halsted turns to ancient philosophies to encourage athletes to find life balance, exude compassion, and focus on overall wellbeing. Drawing from his 20 years in competitive sports and collaborations with top-tier sports psychologist and coaches, Halsted brings audiences a revolutionary view on how to prepare for high-level sports competitions.