September 20/06 5:54 am - Hydro-Québec/AFAE Bursury Program Expanded

Posted by Editoress on 09/20/06
 

Courtesy Sportcom

Hydro-Québec will invest $375,000 to expand its bursary program in partnership with the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence
BR>Names of the 23 athletes receiving a $3,000 bursary in 2006 announced at a press conference

Pierre Gagnon, Senior Counsel at Hydro-Québec, today announced a $375,000 investment as part of the company’s partnership with the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence.

This investment, representing $125,000 per year over a three-year period starting in 2007, will allow Hydro-Québec to expand its athletic bursary program. The program was inaugurated in 1998 with an initial Hydro-Québec investment of $210,000 spread over three years, followed by an additional $270,000 in 2001 and a further investment of $300,000 in 2004. Originally aimed exclusively at athletes identified as the most promising “elite” competitors, the Hydro-Québec bursary program will now encompass the “hopeful” category, starting in 2007, and so provide support earlier in the career of our young athletes from all over the province.

Mr. Gagnon took this opportunity to present 23 bursaries worth $3,000 each as part of the ninth edition of the Hydro-Québec bursary program. He mentioned the excellent work of the Foundation, without which these talented young athletes would not have access to financial support or recognition by the sports community. Physical activity is essential for the well-being of young people and Hydro-Québec is proud to contribute to this social cause.

Many of the athletes supported by this program regularly distinguish themselves on the international scene:

• In tennis, Marie-Eve Pelletier (1998 recipient) and Alexandra Wozniak (2002) impressed the crowd and tennis specialists at the last Rogers Cup.

• In aquatic sports, four athletes performed superbly at the recent FINA World Championships in Montréal in 2005: Roseline Filion (2003 recipient) and Meaghan Benfeito (2004) were bronze medalists in the 10-metre platform synchronized diving, and synchronized swimmers Anouk Renière-Lafrenière (1998) and Marie-Pier Boudreau-Gagnon (1999) were members of the 5th-ranked squad in the team competition.

• In figure skating, Joannie Rochette (2001) finished 5th at the Torino Olympic Games.

• In alpine skiing, Jean-Philippe Roy (1998 recipient) came 8thin the combined event at Salt Lake City in 2002 and Érik Guay (1994) finished 4th in the Super-G event in Torino.

• In short track speed skating, François-Louis Tremblay (1998 recipient) is a triple Olympic medalist.

• And finally, in canoe-kayak sprint, Richard D. Dober just won a silver medal at the World Championships.

The Hydro-Québec bursaries were presented at the Lion d’Or in Montréal in the presence of Claude Chagnon, President of the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence. Mr. Chagnon said he was very pleased with the renewed support provided by Hydro-Québec, which will expand the program to include more young athletes who are just emerging on the national and international scenes and who represent the future of their sports.

2006-2007 Hydro-Québec Bursary Program Recipients

Recipient	Sport	Age	Place Of Residence
Jennifer Abel	Diving	15	Laval
Marie-ève Beauchemin-Nadeau*	Weightlifting	17	Candiac
Maude-Hélène Benoît	Judo	15	Québec City (born in Rimouski)
Jonathan Blouin	Swimming	17	Québec City
Justin Boyd	Water polo	17	Beaconsfield
Carolann Cloutier	Basketball	16	St-Mathieu-de-Beloeil
Francis Croft*	Gymnastics	16	Chicoutimi
Kevin Darwish	Figure skating	19	Laval
Myriam Dumont-Breton	Athletics	17	Pohénégamook
Laurie-Anne Dupont-Renaud	Cycling	16	Repentigny
Jessie Duval-Boulet*	Volleyball	18	Cap Saint-Ignace
Alex Dyas	Wrestling	20	Montréal
Jo-annie Fortin	Synchronized swimming	15	Montréal
Jean-Philippe Gagnon*	Judo	18	Baie-Comeau
Marie-Michèle Gagnon	Alpine skiing	17	Québec City
Julien Gaudreau-Pollender	Fencing	18	Granby
Annie Guay*	Ice hockey	21	Rouyn-Noranda
Marianne Jodoin	Tennis	13	Varennes
Henriane Latour	Freestyle skiing	16	Québec City (Lac Beauport)
Julian Potvin-Bernal	Canoe-kayak slalom	16	Chelsea
Sara Potvin-Bernal	Canoe-kayak slalom	19	Chelsea
Dominique Rollin*	Cycling	23	Boucherville
David Therrien	Canoe-kayak sprint	18	Trois-Rivières

* Child of a Hydro-Québec employee

Identified by their provincial federations as among the most promising competitors at the elite level, all the athletes must be eligible to represent Canada at the Olympic Games, the Paralympics or World Championships in their respective disciplines. They must also demonstrate that the financial support they are applying for will meet a genuine need. In addition, they must commit themselves to a post-career project which, given the recipients’ age, usually takes the form of high school, CEGEP, college or university studies.
About the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence
The mission of the Foundation is to financially support and encourage student-athletes in their pursuit of excellence and to promote athletes as role models in Québec society. By the end of 2006, the Foundation will have handed out more than half a million dollars in bursaries. www.faeq.com

 

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