Kyle Garlett

Speaking Fee: $8,000-$10,000
(Discount offered for youth groups)

To order & view Kyle’s new book click here:
http://ironmankyle.com/mywriting.html

Completing a triathlon is an impressive accomplishment. So how would you describe a triathlon completed less than a year after having a heart transplant? And then, what would you say knowing that that heart transplant came on the heels of four separate cancer diagnoses – three bouts with Hodgkin’s disease and a secondary battle with acute lymphocytic leukemia – and 54 total months of treatments that included radiation, chemotherapy, and a stem cell transplant?

You might say it sounds unbelievable. Until you meet Kyle Garlett, the man who endured the shock of the multiple diagnoses, suffered through the years of treatment, survived the eventual heart transplant, and then triumphantly crossed the finish line of the Nautica Malibu Triathlon on September 16, 2007 – just eleven months after transplant.

And after meeting Kyle you probably won’t be at all surprised to hear that in 2009 he plans to become the first heart transplant recipient ever to complete the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii. The date of that famous race, October 10, 2009, is Kyle’s three-year heart transplant anniversary.

In Kyle's many years as a cancer and heart patient he has stared down death and watched countless others do the same. He has experienced some of life's worst miseries, witnessed many of its greatest triumphs, and seen the magnificent strength and compassion that define the human spirit. And it is with that in mind that Kyle tackles his complementary roles of writer and motivational speaker.

As a writer Kyle spent five years as the Senior Writer for Fox Sports. Since leaving Fox, Kyle has worked freelance for FoxSports.com and ESPN The Magazine, and has recently written the book “The Worst Call Ever” - a compilation of the most infamous calls ever blown by referees, umpires, and other blind/crooked officials. “The Worst Call Ever” was released by HarperCollins in May, 2007. Kyle also has a follow up project with HarperCollins titled “What Were They Thinking?” - Due to be released on May 1, 2009 – and is working on a memoir about his life titled “A Rain Will Come.”

As a speaker Kyle has touched and inspired thousands with his story, and experienced what he considers to be his greatest joy. While speaking to a group of 400 runners the night before they were to tackle the 2002 Santa Barbara Half-Marathon, Kyle met Carrie Riordan. Two and a half years later the couple was married on ABC-TV’s “Extreme Makeover: Wedding Edition” at The City of Hope National Medical Center - the site of Kyle’s stem cell transplant in 1995.

Kyle also speaks frequently on behalf of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and is a vocal advocate for organ donation, believing that the continued fight for a cure is the covenant that all cancer survivors keep with the fallen. This belief, and the unqualified joy that each day of life brings to those who live on, are the beacons that continue to guide him.