One of the most celebrated athletes of Canada, Clara Hughes, has a net worth of $10 million. Deemed as ‘an athlete of all seasons,’ she has skated, cycled, and even raced professionally.
The 51 years old olympian had a difficult childhood and teenage. But a fortunate encounter with Olympic games on TV made her interested in taking up sports herself.
From a troubled teenager, Hughes claimed the Olympic medal, not once but six times, becoming a rare athlete who excels in multiple sports.
After retirement, Clara has been spending her time giving back to society and people. Moreover, she is an advocate of mental health and is connected to various other charities as well.
This kind and noble athlete has now become a role model for everyone. Now, the Canadians recognize her as an unofficial brand ambassador of Canada.
In this article, we will investigate the financial matters of this Olympic star. Before going into details, here are some impressive quick facts:
Clara Hughes: Quick Facts
| Full Name | Clara Hughes |
| Common Name | Clara Hughes |
| Titles | Order of Canada, Order of Manitoba |
| Birthdate | September 27, 1972 |
| Age | 51 years old |
| Zodiac Sign | Libra |
| Mother’s Name | Maureen Hughes |
| Father’s Name | Ken Hughes |
| Siblings | One older sister |
| Birthplace | Winnipeg, Manitoba |
| Home Town | Winnipeg, Manitoba |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Residence | Canada |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Ethnicity | White |
| School | Elmwood High School |
| College | N/A |
| Education | Various honorary degrees |
| Height | 5’9″/176 cm |
| Weight | 69 kg (152 lb) approx |
| Eye Colour | Dark Brown |
| Hair Colour | Brown |
| Shoe Size | N/A |
| Martial Status | Married |
| Spouse | Peter Guzman |
| Children | None |
| Ex-partners | N/A |
| Profession | Athlete, Humanitarian |
| Sports | Road bicycle racing, Track cycling, Speed skating |
| Debut | 1988 |
| Jersey | N/A |
| Coach | N/A |
| Olympic Medals | 6(2 in cycling, 4 in speed skating) |
| Status | Retired |
| Retired On | February 24, 2010 (speed skating), 2012(cycling |
| Hobbies | Reading, Adventure Trips |
| Affiliated with | Bell Canada, Right to play |
| Favorite Book | N/A |
| Favorite Food | N/A |
| Merch | Book |
| Social Media | Facebook, Twitter |
| Website | http://www.clara-hughes.com/ |
| Last Update | April, 2024 |
Clara Hughes: Net Worth and Income
The remarkable athlete Clara Hughes has her net worth listed at $10 million. The amount comes after including her prize money, income, assets, and other brand deals.
Clara really isn’t the kind of person to flaunt her wealth. Instead, she loves a low-key adventurous life.
Likewise, Hughes enjoys working in charity functions and loves seeing people smile. Her biggest aspiration is to inspire as many people as possible.
After retirement, it can get pretty tricky for an athlete to manage finances. But not Clara; she has made investments that give her a sense of financial stability.
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Clara Hughes: House and Cars
House
Clara had attempted to buy real estate before but did not find it comfortable being landlords. She and her husband bought a rental income house in Calgary in 2005 but sold it only a few months later.
Over the years, they have bought and sold properties in different parts of Canada. They have a quiet home in Canmore, where they hope to spend the rest of their lives.
Cars
While she spent most of her career riding bikes, she acknowledges how valuable cars are for transportation. She has owned many different vehicles from Mazda to Subaru, Volkswagen, etc.
Most of these cars came as a part of her sponsorship deals. But in reality, Clara is not a big fan of cars.
Though she could have any vehicle she likes, Hughes doesn’t see herself driving a big Mercedes or an expensive sports car.
Similarly, Hughes’s first car ever was the one she bought in 1997, in California. It was a primary 1995 Toyota T100 truck.
It served her a long time, and she still keeps it in her home. After that, she bought a 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander XLS 4WD SUV in 2014, this time with her own money.
Interesting fact: when she went to the dealer to make the purchase, she took her bike! She believes this SUV has the power and speed of an olympian.
Although Clara calls herself a slow driver, she has been in few nasty accidents in her life. So she always prefers safe vehicles.
Clara Hughes: Businesses and Investments
Clara put all her prize money, sponsorship, and all the money she earned into an athlete’s fund. Having a dedicated fund to save money has given her retirement security.
Unlike other jobs, athletes don’t actually have financial security past their prime days. Clara herself has said that Olympic athletes are not like ‘NHL athletes’ in finances.
In that case, athletes have to be especially clever about money management. Clara took the help of people who understand business and finance to learn where to invest her hard-earned money.
Back in the early 1990s, her teammates convinced her to invest $3,000 in some cattle company.
Investing in stock is a precarious business if you do it without having proper knowledge. Clara learned this the hard way.
Hughes ended up losing all her money. Well, for hard workers like Clara, even that sum of money meant a lot.
Nevertheless, that made her realize how investing without understanding is a path to lose. Having proper guidance gives her assurance about where her wealth is going.
Thankfully, she has a lot of money invested in stocks of major corporations and banks. Furthermore, she has made investments in companies like Disney and Apple.
But Clara is old school. She is not the one to splurge and spend on extravaganza.
And as they say, money saved is money earned. For the Olympic champ, her most incredible wealth is her happiness and her excellent health.
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Clara Hughes: Endorsements and Sponsorships
Clara is a prevalent name, mostly in her home country Canada, we know this by now.
Being a star in her country has also opened up many partnerships and sponsorships for Clara.
Not to mention, Hughes has her own website, which supplies stuff from Shimano, Specialized, Lululemon Athletica, etc. These companies provide her with essential gear, equipment, and apparel for her games.
Clara Hughes: Lifestyle and Vacations
Being a former athlete, you can imagine, Clara has a pretty active Lifestyle. The Canadian spends much of her time outdoors and in adventurous activities.
Similarly, Hughes is a big fan of hiking and trekking. Some notable walks she has completed include the Pacific crest trail, Appalachian Trail, and Baja trail.
Her husband, Peter, also shares her love of the outdoors and accompanies her often. In fact, it was Peter who was initially a passionate backpacker.
Clara got inspired by him and subsequently has completely fallen in love with it. Furthermore, they go on kayaking trips, cycling, and even camp together.
Clara Hughes: Philanthropy
Clara believes that she can use her success to help others and is continuously doing so.
Having suffered and recovered from depression herself, she has been working as an advocate of mental health. In 2014, she traveled 11,000 kilometers around Canada, talking to people about mental health.
Moreover, the ‘big ride’ took her 110 days (March 11 to July 1, 2014) to complete. There is also a documentary. about this epic ride named ‘Clara’s Big Ride.’
Hughes is closely associated with the ‘Right to play,’ a non-profit initiated by Johan Olaf koss.
Likewise, RTP promotes life skills for children, provides health-related support, and promotes peace in disadvantaged communities and countries.
Immediately after winning her gold medal in the 2006 winter Olympics, she donated $10,000 to RTP. With RTP, she has also traveled to Ethiopia, Mali, Ghana to meet and engage with children.
In fact, Hughes has also worked with Take a Hike to send at-risk youth to an alternative education program.
Particularly, it focuses on empowering them through the adventure-based learning process, counseling, academics, and community involvement.
When Bell Canada announced a new mental health campaign to help raise awareness of and funds to support people living with mental illness, Clara immediately showed interest in working together. Now she is a spokesperson for Bell Let’s Talk.
This was her recent reach out to the public to stand in solidarity for the movement after 751 unmarked graves were found by a Residential School in Saskatchewan.
She is also an ambassador for a good cause again, the ” This is our Shot” campaign which encourages people out there to combat vaccine hesitancy.
Recently, the campaign raised $96,000 from t-shirt sales to support youth mental health.
Clara Hughes: Books
Clara has a big name in her home country Canada. So when she published her book Open Heart, Open mind in 2015, it went on to be the no.1 national bestseller.
The journey to the top is physically as well as mentally challenging for every athlete. This book is a collection of her journey to become the celebrated sportsperson that she is.
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Clara Hughes: Career Summary
Clara started skating at the age of 16 and was a junior champion at the sports. Although cycling was initially only a cross-training method, she realized she had potential in that as well.
After skating for few years, she took up started cycling professionally at the age of 17.
Moreover, she is now 18 times the national champion at cycling and has two Olympic medals.
Later, Hughes made a comeback to speed skating at the age of 28. Even after that long break, she won gold in skating in the 2006 winter Olympics.
Clara retired officially in 2012. She has been spending her time in philanthropic works and backpacking!
Medal records
Clar’s graph during her sixteen years of career has only moved upward clinching multiple medals at both Summer and Winter Games, the only athlete to do that not in Canada or North America but in the whole wide world.
To start with, Clara won a bronze medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic games in road racing and in the time trial as well.
Clara clinched a silver in the 1995 Tunja World Championships in time trial again. Furthermore, gold at the 1995 Tunja World Championships in the time trial made her a debutant as a gold-medalist.
Moreover, Clara clinched a silver medal in Mar Del Plata in road racing, and in 2003 Santo Domingo in the time trial. Following that, notching a bronze medal in Mar Del Plata time trial enhanced her records.
Clara was a gold-medalist at the 2011 Medellin Pan American Road and Track Championships and in time-trial.
Clara’s medal records for track cycling go this way, bronze at the 2002 Manchester points race, gold at the 2003 Santo Domingo point race, and silver at Havana 1991 Individual Pursuit.
As a woman speed skater, Clara grabbed a gold medal in the 2006 Winter Olympics, 5000m speed skating competition, bronze in the 2002 Salt Lake City, again a 5000m speed skating competition, and a bronze in 2010 Vancouver.
Clara also notched a silver at 2006 Turin (Team Pursuit). She participated in World Single Distance Championships and won gold at 2004 Seoul, silver at 2003 Berlin, 2008 Nagano, 2009 Vancouver all in a 5000 meters speed skating competition.
Adding up to the list, a silver in 2005 Inzell (individual and team pursuit both).
Clara Hughes: Quotes
- “I am nowhere near my limit. I want to see if there is any such thing as a limit, I want to go and find out.”
- “I’ve learned what it truly means to be Canadian, and in turn, I’ve been inspired to make a difference in the world, however small it’s been.”
- “I want people to be inspired that I’ve always strived for excellence, and I’ve always gone beyond what anybody ever thought I could do, what I thought I myself could do. And I’ve allowed myself to be inspired, kept my eyes open and my senses open to inspiration around me.”
Clara Hughes: Social Media presence
Twitter: 53.3K Followers
Facebook: 44K Followers
Instagram: 20.8K Followers
Clara Hughes: Three Interesting Facts
- Clara had a difficult childhood. Hughes’s parents split when she was nine, and she went reckless. Drugs, smoking, alcohol, and even quitting school, she did it all. It wasn’t until she watched Gaetan Boucher skating on TV that Hughes fixed her ways and got into sports.
- Hughes is one of those rare athletes who have won models and summer and winter Olympic games. And the only Canadian to do so. In addition to that, she has earned medals in two sports, cycling and speed skating.
- Clara has won many honors throughout her life. She is honored with the ‘order of Canada, ‘order of Manitoba,’ and ‘Meritorious Service Cross.’ She is also inducted into Canada’s sports hall of fame and has a star in Canada’s walk of fame.
- Furthermore, she has two honorary doctorates in Law. The hill in Ontario, where she trained for seven years, was officially renamed ‘Clara’s Climb’ in 2013. There is a school named after her in Ontario. And the list goes on.
Frequently Asked Question
Is Clara Hughes a Hall of Fame?
She has been inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2010. Not only that but, Clara also serves as an Officer in the Order of Canada and inspires all Canadians.
She’s an amazing human. We met at the Timm’s Theater when she was doing a speaking engagement. We happened to be wearing the same shoes and it sparked a conversation. She’s warm, kind, humble and our lives share similarities with the world of mental health and awareness. She’s a true genuine one of a kind person who has a huge heart.