Hayley Wickenheiser OC (born August 12, 1978) is a Canadian former ice hockey player, physician[2] and assistant general manager for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

She is tied with teammates Caroline Ouellette and Jayna Hefford for the record for the most gold medals of any Canadian Olympian, and is widely considered to be the greatest female ice hockey player of all time.

Wickenheiser began playing minor ice hockey on outdoor rinks in her hometown of Shaunavon, Saskatchewan when she was five years old.

Alberta captured the gold medal in the tournament, with Wickenheiser scoring the game-winning goal and being named the Most Valuable Player of the final game.

[6][11] At the age of 15 [12] (1994), Wickenheiser was named to Canada's National Women's Team for the first time and remained a member until her retirement in 2017.

Her second World Championship in 1997 also produced a gold medal and she earned a spot on the tournament All-Star team, the first of four such honours (1997, 1999, 2000, 2005).

[13] Wickenheiser was a member of Team Canada at the 1998 Winter Olympics, when women's hockey was introduced as a medal sport.

Her performance at the 1998 Olympics impressed Men's Team Canada General Manager Bobby Clarke so much, that he invited her to participate in the Philadelphia Flyers rookie camps in 1998 and 1999.

In a bit of redemption for 1998, Canada won the gold medal by defeating Team USA in the final game.

They won gold again, and Wickenheiser once more was named tournament MVP, Top Forward, and to a berth on the all-star team.

Wickenheiser reached her record total of 16 career Olympic goals by scoring once on Wednesday as Canada followed up their 18–0 win over Slovakia and 10–1 defeat of Switzerland.

She is one of only five athletes to win gold in four consecutive Winter Games, along with teammates Jayna Hefford and Caroline Ouellette.

[20] In 1996, Wickenheiser was named MVP of the Esso women's hockey nationals, helping Alberta to a fourth-place finish.

Between 1999 and 2001, Wickenheiser continued to play for her club teams at the Esso Women's National Championships, winning a gold medal and two silvers.

Wickenheiser scored a goal as a member of Team Black in the 2nd Canadian Women's Hockey League All-Star Game.

[29] Wickenheiser joined the 2010–11 Calgary Dinos women's ice hockey team that competes in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS).

[30] The Dinos were playing their second season of CIS hockey, and Wickenheiser was expected to provide leadership to a young team.

[31] Wickenheiser was named the Canada West female athlete of the week on November 2, 2010 after scoring three goals and adding an assist in two games against the University of Alberta.

At the end of the year, Wickenheiser was named the Canada West Most Valuable Player, and captured a spot on the conference's First All-Star Team.

In 1995, Wickenheiser was a member of Team Canada at the World Junior Fastball Championships, held in Normal, Illinois.

[11] In 2000, Wickenheiser attended and competed for Simon Fraser University, and helped lead the team to a 38 and 13 record, en route to a 3rd-place finish at the NAIA National Championships.

[45] Wickenheiser's life story is the subject of a 2005 children's book written by Elizabeth Etue, titled Born to Play.

[46] On July 15, 2011, her hometown of Shaunavon named a new 14 million dollar recreational complex after her, Crescent Point Wickenheiser Centre.