File photo (Image credit: CFJC Today).

By Aaron Schulze

Ken Olynyk to the Hall of Fame

Former WolfPack athletic director to be inducted in Canada West Hall of Fame

Sep 12, 2024 | 11:01 AM

KAMLOOPS — A man who helped shape the Thompson Rivers University (TRU) WolfPack athletic department will be inducted into the Canada West Hall of Fame.

Ken Olynyk will be inducted into the ‘Builder’ category in the Class of 2024-25. The Canada West Hall of Fame is the highest honour the sports conference can bestow.

The former athletic director for TRU joined the program when they were still known as the University College of the Cariboo Sun Demons in 2003. Olynyk oversaw the transition of TRU’s sports department from CCAA to U SPORTS competition and led the way when the Sun Demons became the WolfPack in 2005.

During his 15-year tenure as athletic director, Olynyk led the WolfPack to nine U SPORTS team national championship appearances, including three silver medals and two bronze medal appearances. Additionally, more than 400 student-athletes in the WolfPack program earned either PACWEST Academic Excellence or U SPORTS Academic All-Canadian honours.

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“Ken had an amazing career in university sport, and I am thrilled to see him inducted in the Canada West Hall of Fame,” Curtis Atkinson, TRU’s director of athletics and recreation states in a news release issued Thursday (Sept. 12). “As an administrator and coach, Ken made incredible contributions at the team, school, conference, and national levels. Above all else, Ken had an immeasurable impact on people by being a quality human being and leaving a legacy wherever he went.”

Olynyk joins men’s volleyball player Gord Perrin as the second member of the WolfPack to be inducted into the Canada West Hall of Fame.