Keegan Hirst

Keegan Hirst has lived a truly unique life. A former professional Rugby League player with 326 appearances across his career, Keegan has enjoyed numerous successes on the pitch.

In 2015, Keegan became the first openly gay professional rugby player in Britain, challenging stigmas and inspiring hope through his actions. Alongside his career on the pitch, Keegan has developed a strong reputation within the media and entertainment space, appearing on many primetime TV shows and independently running his podcast The Hirst Locker. Additionally, Keegan is a men’s online coach and founded online training platform PTIQ.

Keegan shares his inspiring and heart-warming story through corporate speaking and has spoken at Lloyds Banking’s Rainbow/LGBTQ+ network event and at Milton Keynes’s Pride event. Keegan reflects on how best a team can unlock its full potential by using the strength of diversity and inclusion, whether that be LGBTQ+, religion, mental health, or cultural differences and by touching upon his experiences as a rugby player, husband, father, son, and friend, he speaks about how he overcame fears, faced up to stigma, and found freedom through self-expression.

By combining his experience of playing professional sport and his compelling personal story of self-discovery and understanding his true identity, he leaves his audiences with a new sense of hope. By encompassing the themes of teamwork; diversity & inclusion; and his battle with mental health issues, Keegan's inspiring and heart-warming story is popular among the events circuit.