Clara Hughes is a Canadian cyclist and speed skater, and has won medals in both sports.
Hughes was born in Winnipeg, and is a graduate of Elmwood High School. In an interview, Hughes reveals that as a youth, she smoked cigarettes and did not envision herself as an athlete. She was inspired to begin skating after witnessing Gaetan Boucher at the 1988 Winter Olympics. She started with speed skating, but in 1990 she moved to competitive cycling, competing in track cycling and road cycling.