Former Olympic swimmer Stephanie Rice has revealed she walked away from a director-level corporate role after saying she believed God was asking her to resign, describing the decision as another fresh start in her life.
The three-time Olympic gold medallist, now known as Stephanie Lassey, shared the account as she launched a new Instagram account dedicated to documenting her Christian faith journey.
Lassey, 38, retired from swimming before announcing in 2024 that she had found Christianity. She later documented her baptism, moved to Dubai and married pastor Mark Lassey.
In a 13-slide post, she reflected on her journey from childhood swimming lessons to Olympic success, saying she had come to link her sense of worth to her achievements.
“I started tying my value to my success,” she wrote.
She said the achievements were followed by a series of difficulties, including public scrutiny, hostile comments, legal battles and failed businesses. One image showed her in tears alongside the words: “But the highs didn’t last.”
According to Lassey, she found Jesus while at her lowest point and bought a one-way ticket to Dubai in an effort to begin again.
After becoming a pastor’s wife, she secured her first corporate position, joining at director level and earning more money than she had for years. Eight months later, she said, she was offered the chief executive role she had long wanted.
“I was offered to become CEO, my dream position … but God asked me to resign, I obeyed,” she wrote.
Stephanie Lassey starts again
Lassey said leaving the role had left her “back at zero” and facing one of the most testing periods of her life.
“I trust God and I’ve learned I can’t force or speed up His plans or when he opens the next door,” she said. “But I can control what I do in the meantime.”
She also acknowledged that abandoning her previous Instagram account meant walking away from 140,000 followers. However, she said she would rather build a smaller audience interested in the story she believed God was now writing.
“Feels like the perfect time to start a fresh account, in my new name, and with a new commitment to sharing the journey God is taking me on,” she wrote.
“I pray that my story would give you hope that God has the power to turn lives around, to restore what’s been broken and bless you above what you’ve asked, thought or even imagined.”
