On October 20th, 2022, Speaker Slam® marked six years since its first ever event. Co-founder Rina Rovinelli shared the story of how it started, in her own words.
The First Night
"I remember the day we first discovered Revival bar. It was such a cool venue and the owner graciously comped us the club for our first event. We were super excited (and nervous) but the event was a huge success."
That night, Speaker Slam® crowned Marcos Mendosa as its first ever champion. Carol Schulte, who would return years later as a Momentum Conference speaker, sat on the very first judging panel.
"We discovered that YES, Toronto was ready for a speaking competition like ours. It took us 5 minutes to decide that our one-off event would become a staple in the community."
Going All In
"It's been a crazy ride, from countless competitions, to 500 million views on our speakers' videos, to creating the training programs that we have today. We quit our jobs and went ALL IN, and we've never looked back. It's been an incredible evolution."
In the six years between that first night and this anniversary, Speaker Slam® grew from a one-off event at a Toronto bar into North America's largest inspirational speaking competition, moved online through the pandemic, and returned to the live stage at Lula Lounge with The Comeback in August 2022. The anniversary arrived one month before the first Momentum Conference and the 2022 Grand Slam at the CBC Glenn Gould Studio.
On Partnership
"Thank you so much to everyone who has spoken on our stages, sat in our audiences and supported us with open arms. We are so grateful. And most of all, I'm grateful for my amazing biz partner and best friend Dan Shaikh. Our wacky chemistry and connection just works."
The video above, made by Dan as an anniversary surprise, captures the journey.