
SPEECH TITLES AND/OR TOPICS
Adventure | Motivation | Personal Development | Sports When Lyn St. James completed her first Indy 500 at the age of 45, she was just the second woman in history to race in the event. Some doubted that a woman could keep up with male drivers, and she struggled to get the sponsorship she needed to race. She took eleventh place, and became the first woman to be selected Indy 500 Rookie of the Year. Fueled by inspiration and limitless motivation, Ms. St. James managed to rise through the ranks and eventually become known as the American Woman Racing Icon of the Century. She is undoubtedly a testament to the power of determination and positive thinking. In 1992, Lyn St. James was the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year and she had seven Indianapolis 500 starts in nine years, including six consecutive starts (1992-1997). She qualified sixth for the 1994 Indy 500 (highest qualifying position for a woman until Danica Patrick's fourth place in 2005 Indy 500). She raced in 15 Indy Racing races including Fed-X CART Championship and Indy Racing Northern Light Series. She held 31 international and national closed circuit speed records over a 20-year career. She raced twice in the Biggest Endurance race in the world; The 24 Hours of Le Mans (France). She also raced 9 times in the famous 12 Hours of Sebring Endurance race and she is the only woman to have ever won an IMSA GT race driving solo. Ms. St. James was recently selected by Sports Illustrated for Women as one of the Top-100 Women Athletes of the Century. She was the recipient of the 2001 Guiding Woman in Sports Award from the National Association for Girls & Woman in Sports. Some of her guest appearances were on The David Letterman Show, The Today Show, Good Morning America, Bob Vila Show, CNN, Lifetime, Oxygen, PBS, TNN, FOX, and Speedvision. She was the Sports Commentator for ESPN/ESPN2, Indy Car Racing Analyst for ABC and Pit Reporter for ABC/ESPN/ESPN2. Lyn St. James has been featured in most recognized women's publications including: Working Woman, Cosmopolitan, Allure, Elle, Shape, Living Fit, Glamour, Women's Sport & Fitness, Entrepreneurial Woman, Lear's, Harper's Bazaar, as well as: Sports Illustrated, People Magazine, Time, Life, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post, New York Post, and the Los Angeles Times and numerous other national and international publications. Ms. St. James actively promotes her own 501c3 foundation; Women in the Winners Circle Foundation and works on Women's Driver Development Programs in quest of training the upcoming young, talented female drivers of the new millennium. She is the author of her biography titled The Ride of Your Life--A Race Car Driver's Journey, published by Hyperion, May 2002.
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