Jack J. Lesyk - Past President

Jack J. Lesyk is the director of the Ohio Center for Sport Psychology and an Adjunct Asst. Professor of Psychology at Cleveland State University.  As a clinical and sport psychologist, he completed his undergraduate work at Penn State and his graduate work at Case Western Reserve University and has been in full-time private practice for over thirty years.  Since 1981, he has worked intensively with athletes from over thirty different sports, at competitive levels ranging from scholastic to world-class, Olympic, and professional.

In 1983 he attended the first U.S. Olympic Committee's Conference on Sport Psychology in Long Beach, Calif and is currently listed in the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Sport Psychology Registry.  He is a charter member of Div. 47 (Sport & Exercise Psychology) of the American Psychological Association and served on the divisions’s Executive Committee.  He has been an active member of the AASP since 1992 and has previously served on its Executive Board for six years.  In 2010 he was presented with AASP’s Distinguished Professional Practice Award.

Dr. Lesyk  is a clinical advisor to the American Running Association and has served on the editorial boards of the American Journal of Medicine and Sports and the Journal of Sport Psychology in Action.  He has been quoted in a wide variety of publications including:  Time magazine, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune,, Los Angeles Times, the Atlanta Constitution, and Runners’ World.  He has discussed his work on radio and television and has presented at national and international professional conferences.

Since the publication of his book, Developing Sport Psychology Within Your Clinical Practice: A Practical Guide for Mental Health Professions, Dr. Lesyk has spent an increasing amount of his professional time conducting intensive training workshops for mental health professionals who are developing their skills and credentials in sport psychology.  He also provides mentoring and consulting services in person as well as by phone and on the Internet.

As a youth he participated in tennis, golf, wrestling and fencing.  As an adult, he has been an avid runner and has competed in the New York, Chicago, and Boston Marathons. While in college he had the honor of serving as the Penn State Nittany Lion Mascot.  A frequent speaker at professional, civic, and social organizations, he is known for his particular emphasis that sports should enhance one's overall well-being and joy of living.