There are around twenty young athletes participating in a very first college baseball training session in Rivière-du-Loup and thus discovering the CEGEP’s new sports facilities.
This new team, called the Portageurs de Rivière-du-Loup, will be the eighth team to join the Association du Sud-Ouest, a league which already includes seven other collegiate teams from Quebec.
This is the first team from Eastern Quebec to join this training.
The student life advisor at Cégep de Rivière-du-Loup, Maxime Marchand, maintains that baseball is gaining popularity.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Pier-Olivier Search
It’s very interesting because baseball is experiencing a strong increase in popularity.
says the student life advisor at Cégep de Rivière-du-Loup, Maxime Marchand, who expects young people to be there during registration.
We may even be called upon to do a selection camp for the first year with the popularity it will have.
Continuity will be able to be done in good harmony with primary, secondary and college
he believes.
The Cégep de Rivière-du-Loup wants to convince baseball players to choose its team to play at the college level.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Pier-Olivier Search
Attract enthusiasts
Maxime Marchand believes that this new team will allow young baseball enthusiasts to practice their sport while remaining in the region.
Martine Riou affirms that the main wish of the institution is to allow athletes to practice baseball in their region.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Pier-Olivier Search
The assistant director of studies and student affairs at Cégep de Rivière-du-Loup, Martine Riou, also shares this opinion.
Those from the region here who wanted to pursue baseball at college went to other CEGEPs. […] You really had to move and live somewhere else.
On Saturday, young people from the region, as well as students from New Brunswick and the rest of Quebec, came to visit the site.
Around twenty young people took part in the day organized by the Cégep de Rivière-du-Loup to present them the facilities and support that will be offered to the future baseball team.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Pier-Olivier Search
Training, summer and winter
The new CEGEP facilities will allow athletes to train in baseball year-round while continuing their studies.
Thomy Lévesque.” class=”absolute left-0 top-0 size-full object-cover transition-opacity ease-out print:relative html-dark:brightness-[.8]” loading=”lazy” src=”https://images.radio-canada.ca/q_auto,w_700/v1/ici-info/16×9/thomy-levesque-baseball-rdl-cegep.jpg”/>Thomy Lévesque will be the head coach of the Cégep de Rivière-du-Loup Portageurs baseball team. He is delighted for the young players who will not have to leave the region to continue practicing their sport, as he himself had to do a few years ago.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Pier-Olivier Search
There will be a league, therefore a season of around fifteen matches during the fall. Then, the goal of the program will be to prepare them for the summer season.
explains the head coach of the Portageurs, Thomy Lévesque.
The new team will include around 25 players. She must be trained in time for the start of the season in September.
With information from Marie-Christine Rioux
