Olympic and World Champion rower Silken Laumann was associated with all the attributes of great sportsmanship:determination, focus and courage. Her inspiring comeback from a brutal injury ten months before the 1992 Barcelona Olympics stands today as the greatest recovery in Canadian sports history. She became a symbol of hope for all Canadians and came home to a thunderous welcome and an enduring popularity that still resonates with the mere mention of her name.

In this interview with W5, we hear another side to Silken’s story. We learn about the deeply personal and painful challenges she has had to face. She takes us through a troubled but fascinating and ultimately fulfilling journey that has brought her to a new understanding of her past. Laumann seems to have found a sense of inner calm that eluded her through the years and better allows her to cope with the kind of challenges we all face on our own rivers of life.