Adam Kreek (born 2 December 1980) is an author, executive business coach and

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

. He is a member of the

BC Sports Hall of Fame The BC Sports Hall of Fame is a museum located in BC Place Stadium, at Gate A, the main entrance to the stadium, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It collects, preserves, studies and interprets materials that relate to British Columbia's spo ...

and the

Ontario Sports Hall of Fame The Ontario Sports Hall of Fame is an association dedicated to honouring athletes and personalities with outstanding achievement in sports in Ontario, Canada. The hall of fame was established in 1994 by Bruce Prentice, following his 15-year tenure ...

. After his athletic career, Kreek's work has focused upon executive leadership and performance, and in 2019 he published his first book The Responsibility Ethic: 12 Strategies Exceptional People Use to Do the Work and Make Success Happen. As Adam Kreek says, “The grit that’s required for success in athletics is the same grit that’s required for success in business.” After publishing, this book became a bestseller and appeared regularly on British Columbia's business book bestseller list. Adam Kreek is a champion for men's health where he works to promote the adoption of healthy behaviour changes in working aged individuals.

Early life

Born in

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

, he was a student at the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary instit ...

where he met his wife Rebecca. After the Athens Olympics, he moved to

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

to complete a degree in Geotechnical Engineering and Hydrology and continue his rowing career there under Coach

Craig Amerkhanian Craig Amerkhanian is a Pac-10 college champion oarsman and rowing coach at Stanford University. Amerkhanian also has placed numerous athletes on National, Olympic and "Boat Race" (Oxford/Cambridge) teams. He was an All-Pac-10 oarsman at Universi ...

. In 2005 Kreek took the summer off to get married and spend time with his wife. Kreek coached at Stanford Rowing Center in 2006 and 2007 for the Junior Crew.

Athletic career

He won the gold medal at the 2002, 2003 and 2007 world championships for Canada's men's eight team in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

respectively. At the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

, Kreek competed with the Canadian men's eight, who were widely expected to win a medal but ultimately finished in fifth place. He won a gold medal at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

in the men's eights with

Andrew Byrnes James Andrew Byrnes (born May 22, 1983) is a Canadian rower and Olympic gold medallist. He was born in Toronto, Ontario and raised in Ithaca, New York. Byrnes is a 2005 graduate of Bates College in Maine, where he rowed for the Bates Rowing Team ...

, Kyle Hamilton, Malcolm Howard,

Kevin Light Kevin Richard Light (born May 16, 1979) is a Canadian rower. Early life He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia but has lived in Victoria, British Columbia since 1985. He began rowing at Stelly's High School in grade 12 and graduated in 19 ...

Ben Rutledge Ben Rutledge (born November 9, 1980, in Cranbrook, British Columbia) was a Canadian Olympic rower and is currently a Mortgage Broker. In Seville, Spain 2002 he was a member of Canada's inaugural Men's 8+ crew to win a gold medal at a World Champ ...

Dominic Seiterle Dominic Seiterle (born September 4, 1975) is a Canadian rower born in Montreal, Quebec. He is a 2008 Summer Olympics and World Rowing Championships gold medallist as a member of the 8+. He also won three gold medals at the 2007 World Rowing Cup r ...

Jake Wetzel Jacob Wetzel (born December 26, 1976) is a Canadian rower. He has represented both Canada and the United States at the World Championships and the Olympics. He was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. College years As a te ...

and cox Brian Price. Kreek's singing of

O Canada "O Canada" (french: Ô Canada, italic=no) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the mus ...

at the medal ceremony was cited as an inspiration by

Simon Whitfield Simon St. Quentin Whitfield (born May 16, 1975 in Kingston, Ontario) is a retired Olympic triathlon champion from Canada. Whitfield won 10 consecutive Canadian Triathlon Championships titles and carried the Canadian national flag during the 2 ...

, who won a silver medal in the

triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the t ...

. Whitfield wrote "Sing like Adam Kreek" on the handlebars of his bicycle and repeated "Sing like Kreek" to himself near the end of the race. On 23 January 2013, Kreek set off with three other rowers, Markus Pukonen, Jordan Hanssen and Pat Fleming to attempt the first-ever row from mainland Africa to North America, recording it for classroom lessons in schools across the United States and Canada. On 6 April 2013, 73 days into the 6,700-kilometre transatlantic rowing expedition, the boat capsized in the

Bermuda Triangle The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an urban legend focused on a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysterio ...

. The crew called for help through a personal locator beacon attached to a life-jacket and were successfully located and rescued. The expedition was sponsored by the Canadian Wildlife Federation and Ocean Adventure, Rowing and Education (OAR Northwest). A computer program developed at the University of Victoria monitored the crew's activities and ensured they followed a strict schedule that maximized their energy and mental sharpness. There was also scientific equipment on board to monitor the ocean conditions and marine life.

Athletic heritage

His grandfather Aleksander Kreek was an Estonian

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

ter and the 1938 European champion in the event before he emigrated to Canada in the 1950s.Aleksander Kreek
Eesti Spordi Biograffiline Leksikon. Retrieved on 2014-10-19.

References

External links

* * * *
Responsibility Ethic Webpage

Adam's Humorous Men's Health Video

Men's Health Champion Adam Kreek

I Seek Failure: Adam Kreek at TEDxVictoria 2013

Capsized: NBC Dateline Documentary

Adam's 8+ Olympic Gold Medal Race

Sing Like Kreek
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kreek, Adam 1980 births Living people Canadian male rowers Olympic rowers of Canada Olympic gold medalists for Canada Olympic medalists in rowing Rowers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Rowers from London, Ontario Canadian people of Dutch descent Canadian people of Estonian descent University of Victoria alumni Stanford Cardinal rowers World Rowing Championships medalists for Canada