When Clara Hughes says that she has suffered from depression, the first reaction of many would linger somewhere between astonishment and disbelief. After all, this is a woman who seems to have it all, whose best known physical feature is a billboard big smile. She is among the greatest athletes the country has ever produced, and the only athlete anywhere to win multiple Olympic medals in both winter and summer games. At first glance, hers is a life of fantasy and accomplishment. But as Hughes knows well, depression can be debilitating and insidious.

There may be little an ex-athlete can do to cure the depression of millions of Canadians. But there may be much she can do to drag it into the open. That now has become the focus of the same intensity and commitment that drove her to the top of the athletic world. This year, Clara Hughes will begin what she describes as the most important project of her life. It may be the most grueling as well. She will ride her bike across Canada, encouraging people to talk about mental health.