Leaders share stories at University of Regina’s Inspiring Leadership Forum

Leaders from across Saskatchewan gathered at the 2026 U of R Leadership Forum, featuring Christine Sinclair. Jacob Carr reports.

The University of Regina hosted its Inspiring Leadership Forum on Thursday, bringing together a range of prominent speakers from across Canada and beyond to share their experiences and perspectives on leadership.

Among the keynote speakers was Kyla Guru, a 21-year-old Stanford University student and the founder and CEO of the cybersecurity company Bits N’ Bites. The organization focuses on educating people about cybersecurity and providing tools to help prevent cyberattacks in an increasingly connected digital world.

Canadian soccer icon Christine Sinclair was also featured at the event. The 2021 Olympic gold medallist and 14-time Canadian Player of the Year took part in a question-and-answer session with attendees.

“The more you can get out and try to inspire people, the better,” said Sinclair. “Especially going across Canada, there’s so much more to this country than just Vancouver and Toronto. It’s nice to get to different parts of the country to share our stories. And yeah, hopefully inspire some people in the crowd.”

During the event, Sinclair was also able to meet some young fans who look up to her.

Local soccer-playing sisters Harper Goertz, 12, and Presley Goertz, 9, had the opportunity to meet Sinclair and have soccer balls signed by the Canadian star.

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“It was really cool. I’ve seen her so many times in the shows and playing soccer. It was just so cool getting to meet her,” said Harper.

“I really look up to her when I play soccer, and I want to be just like her when I grow up, and it was super cool to be able to meet her in person,” said Presley.

Sinclair, who has long advocated for gender equality and the growth of women’s sports, also spoke about the increasing momentum behind women’s professional leagues in North America, including soccer and hockey.

“My entire career we were saying, if you put women on TV, if you put them in venues that people can access, people will come watch and people will tune in,” she said. “What you’ve seen over the past five years, for instance, that’s the case.”

She added that while women’s sports are continuing to grow, there is still work to be done, including improving aging facilities and stadiums to better support athletes and fans.