Canoe Kayak Canada is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Terry Orlick, professor of Sport and Performance Psychology at the University of Ottawa, renowned Mental Performance Coach, author and long-time member of the support team for CKC National Team athletes.
Terry was a noted leader in the development of the field of Sport and Performance Psychology and generations of CKC athletes benefited from his teaching and guidance to support them in their pursuit of excellence, while also encouraging them to maintain and nurture a love of the sport and a joy in daily experience as a team and community. Notably, Terry was part of the CKC Olympic Teams in this support role for the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games.
“Terry was a one in a million guy. He shared the ‘simple joys’, as he would fondly say,” said LA Schmidt, CKC Commodore Sprint. “Thank you Terry for teaching us all how to excel at living.”
Beyond his professional connection with our CKC community, Terry was a paddling dad, father to Jewelia and Skye Orlick, both paddlers at the Cascades Canoe Club in Chelsea, Quebec. CKC offers its deepest sympathies to the Orlick family and all the friends and loved ones mourning at this time.
“The heart of human excellence often begins to beat when you discover a pursuit that absorbs you, frees you, challenges you, or gives you a sense of meaning, joy, or passion.”
Terry Orlick, “In Pursuit of Excellence – 5th Edition”