{{Short description|Canadian soccer player and physiotherapist}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2019}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Rick Celebrini | image = | caption = | fullname = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1967|10|16}} | birth_place = Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada | death_date = | death_place = | height = {{height|ft=6|in=1}} | position = Defender | youthyears1 = 1985–1986 | youthclubs1 = Capilano University | youthyears2 = 1989–1992 | youthclubs2 = University of British Columbia | years1 = 1987 | clubs1 = Edmonton Brick Men | caps1 = 18 | goals1 = 0 | years2 = 1989 | clubs2 = Edmonton Brick Men | caps2 = 11 | goals2 = 0 | years3 = 1992–1996 | clubs3 = Vancouver 86ers | caps3 = 41 | goals3 = 2 | nationalyears1 = 1987 | nationalteam1 = Canada U-20 | nationalcaps1 = 5 | nationalgoals1 = 0 | manageryears1 = 2011 | managerclubs1 = Vancouver Whitecaps FC (physiotherapist) | medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{fb|CAN}}}} {{MedalSport|Men's Association football}} {{MedalCompetition|North American Nations Cup}} {{Medal|3rd|1991 United States|}} }}
'''Rick Celebrini''' (born October 16, 1967) is a Canadian former soccer player who currently is the director of sports medicine and performance for the Golden State Warriors, and previously served as physiotherapist and head of sports medicine and science for the Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
Celebrini played for the Canadian U-20 national team at the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship. He played professionally for the Vancouver 86ers. Celebrini is also a founder and the Director of Sport Medicine and Science for the Fortius Institute.
==Player== In 1985, Celebrini began his collegiate soccer career at Capilano University. In 1986, Capilano finished third in the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association Soccer Championship. In 1987, Celebrini transferred to the University of British Columbia, but was out of soccer for nearly two years after breaking his left foot. During his five seasons with the Thunderbirds (1988-1992), Celebrini and his team mates won four consecutive Canadian Interuniversity Sport men's soccer championship. In 1992, he graduated with a degree in physiotherapy. In 1987 and 1989, Celebrini played for the Edmonton Brick Men of the Canadian Soccer League during the collegiate off seasons and played with the Vancouver 86ers in 1992.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.statscrew.com/minorsoccer/stats/p-delucpas001| title = Pasquale DeLuca soccer statistics on StatsCrew.com}}</ref> On April 22, 1993 signed Vancouver 86ers of the American Professional Soccer League.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/22/sports/transactions-736093.html |title=April 22, 1993 Transactions |work=The New York Times |date=April 22, 1993 |access-date=November 22, 2011}}</ref> He remained with Vancouver through the 1996 season, but was hampered by injuries during most of those years.
In 1987, Celebrini earned four caps with the Canadian U-20 national team which competed at the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship. He also played for the Canadian team at the 1993 Summer Universiade.
== Physiotherapist == Celebrini first became interested in physiotherapy after breaking his ankle when he was fifteen and receiving therapy at a clinic that also treated professional athletes. His interest was reinforced after a broken left foot kept him from playing for two years. After graduating from the University of British Columbia in 1992, Celebrini pursued a career as a physiotherapist in addition to playing professionally. He became the team physiotherapist for the Canadian Alpine Men's Ski Team at the 1994 Winter Olympics and 2002 Winter Olympics. He was the chief therapist and medical manager at the 2010 Winter Olympics. On July 29, 2011, the Vancouver Whitecaps FC hired Celebrini as the team's physiotherapist. In August 2018 he became the director of sports medicine and performance for the Golden State Warriors.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Slater |first1=Anthony |last2=Thompson II |first2=Marcus |date=April 10, 2023 |title=The Warriors' whisperer: If Golden State is to repeat, he'll have a hand in it |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4381601/2023/04/10/rick-celebrini-golden-state-warriors-trainer/ |url-status=live |work=The Athletic |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230410110045/https://theathletic.com/4381601/2023/04/10/rick-celebrini-golden-state-warriors-trainer/ |archive-date=April 10, 2023 |access-date=April 10, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Kuzma|first1=Ben |title=Celebrini leaves Canucks a parting gift |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122622599/the-province/ |newspaper=The Province |date=August 14, 2018 |page=56 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=April 10, 2023}}</ref>
==Director of sport medicine and science== Celebrini was a co-founder and partner in the Fortius Institute and senior member in the leadership team behind Fortius Sport & Health,<ref>{{cite web |title=Fortius Welcomes SportMedBC |url=https://sportmedbc.com/fortius-welcomes-sportmedbc/ |website=Sport Med BC |access-date=12 February 2026}}</ref> whose building was completed in 2013.<ref>{{cite web |title=Project - Fortis Sport & Health |url=http://www.jsasportarchitecture.com/fortius-sport-and-health--sport-medicine-sport-science-.html |website=JSA Sport |access-date=12 February 2026}}</ref> The Fortius Institute was an integrated team of sport medicine, science and training leaders committed to best practices in prevention, performance, treatment, education and research. It closed at the end of 2020,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Campbell |first1=Chris |title=Date revealed for permanent closure of Burnaby's Fortius sports centre |url=https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/burnaby-now-archive/news/date-revealed-for-permanent-closure-of-burnabys-fortius-sports-centre-3141536 |website=Vancouver is awesome |access-date=12 February 2026}}</ref> and their building was sold to the City of Burnaby.<ref>{{cite web |title=City of Burnaby to buy Fortius sports facility for $26.6M for public recreation |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/burnaby-buys-fortius-land-facility-1.5843203 |website=CBC |access-date=12 February 2026}}</ref> The building is now the Christine Sinclair Community Centre.<ref>{{cite web |title=Christine Sinclair Community Centre |url=https://www.burnaby.ca/recreation-and-arts/recreation-facilities/christine-sinclair-community-centre |website=City of Burnaby |access-date=12 February 2026}}</ref>
==Personal life== His oldest son, Aiden, is an ice hockey player and a Vancouver Canucks prospect. His second born son Macklin is an ice hockey player picked first overall by the San Jose Sharks in the 2024 NHL entry draft.<ref>{{cite web |last=Johnston |first=Patrick |title=2024's likely No. 1 overall NHL draft pick wants to be a Canuck |url=https://theprovince.com/sports/hockey/nhl/vancouver-canucks/macklin-celebrini-draft-pick-rebuild |publisher=The Province|date=April 29, 2023|access-date=May 16, 2023}}</ref> In the leadup to the draft lottery, Celebrini expressed hope that the drawing would play out in a way that would allow Macklin to be drafted by the Sharks, thus letting the two remain close to each other in the Bay Area.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j60-qiSbzYg |title=Rick Celebrini Pulling for Sharks To Draft Macklin Celebrini |language=en |access-date=2024-05-08 |via=www.youtube.com}}</ref>
Celebrini's father immigrated to Canada from Croatia and his mother is from Winnipeg.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://theprovince.com/sports/nba-rick-celebrini-physiotherapist-on-raising-four-prolific-young-athletes|title=B.C.'s Rick Celebrini is physiotherapist to the stars, but his best work is raising four prolific young athletes|date=June 24, 2024|access-date=August 10, 2025|author=Kuzma, Ben|website=theprovince.com}}</ref>
==Honours== '''Canada''' *North American Nations Cup: 3rd place, 1991<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesn/north-am-champ91.html#sqd|title=North American Championship 1991 (Los Angeles, USA)-Squads|access-date=April 20, 2025}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{FIFA|195710}} * {{Canada Soccer|656}} * [http://fortiussport.com/institute FortiusSport.com: Fortius Institute] * [https://archive.today/20130123110901/http://fortiussport.com/person/dr-rick-celebrini-phd-pt FortiusSport.com: Dr. Rick Celebrini]
{{Navboxes | title = Canada squads | bg = #E00000 | fg = white | bordercolor = white | list1 = {{Canada squad 1991 North American Nations Cup}} }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Celebrini, Rick}} Category:1967 births Category:Living people Category:American Professional Soccer League players Category:Canadian men's soccer players Category:Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992) players Category:Edmonton Brick Men players Category:Vancouver Whitecaps (1986–2010) players Category:Soccer players from Burnaby Category:UBC Thunderbirds men's soccer players Category:Capilano University alumni Category:Canada men's youth international soccer players Category:Vancouver Whitecaps FC non-playing staff Category:Men's association football defenders Category:Association football physiotherapists Category:Canadian physiotherapists Category:20th-century Canadian sportsmen