From April 23rd to May 2nd, the Défi sportif AlterGo is reinventing itself with an equally unifying and colourful hybrid formula. The event will reflect the new 2021 #StillTogether campaign, where motivating athletes to keep moving is at the heart of its mission!
“The Défi sportif AlterGo team has put its creativity to work in designing a program that will motivate athletes to stay active. We also wanted to preserve the sense of belonging with our community: the 8,000 athletes and their families, the 1,300 volunteers and their families, the staff of 150 schools and rehabilitation centres, the 20 sports federations and associations, as well as our 100 partners,” explains Maxime Gagnon, CEO of AlterGo.
The Défi sportif AlterGo is also pleased to welcome Nancy Audet as the event’s new ambassador. “With her 17 years of experience as a journalist and her involvement with Quebec’s youth, we believe that Nancy is perfectly in tune with our values and our mission,” continues Maxime Gagnon.
It is worth noting that the Défi sportif AlterGo still relies on its loyal trio of spokespersons: Chantal Petitclerc, who has been helping to promote the event for more than 25 years, Jean-Marie Lapointe, who is now in his 20th year, and Hugo Girard, who has been involved for the past 4 years.
The 38th Défi sportif AlterGo will be launched on April 26th with a virtual opening ceremony that will include well-known personalities such as Isabelle Charest, Minister of Education, and singer Ludovick Bourgeois!
Inspiring Athletes
Afterwards, two sports panels will complement the virtual program.
On Tuesday, April 27th, starting at 9:30 a.m., the panel De la relève à l’élite, presented by RDS and hosted by Nancy Audet, will feature the following panelists: Chantal Petitclerc, Marylou Martineau, member of the national boccia team, Woody Belfort, wheelchair basketball athlete, and Jonathan Daigle, young parahockey prospect.
On Friday, April 30th, starting at 11:00 a.m., the panel En Route vers les Jeux paralympiques, presented by Loto-Québec, will reveal how athletes, coaches, and other stakeholders have experienced the postponing of the Tokyo Paralympic Games and what preparations are required in the current context. Hosted by parahockey player Jean Labonté, this panel will be composed of Mario Delisle, national coach of the Canadian boccia team, José Rebelo, member of the national paravolleyball team, and Catherine Gosselin-Després, executive director of the Canadian Paralympic Committee.
An Active School Component
The school component presents sporting events that will be performed by youth from across Quebec, in schools or at home, in 8 sports: field hockey, basketball, soccer, volleyball, slalom, CrossFit, boccia, and rhythmic gymnastics.
The popular mini-marathon will be presented under a different format! Participating schools will organize their own mini-marathon at their own school on Wednesday, April 28th. Thus, all participants of the mini-marathon will be able to run their race at the same time as several other schools throughout Quebec!
Virtual Boccia Challenge
For the development and elite components, there will unfortunately be no face-to-face competition this year due to the pandemic. The Défi sportif AlterGo would like to thank the partner federations for their support and collaboration during this decision-making process.
The Défi sportif AlterGo will nevertheless offer the event’s community an opportunity to gather around the sport by presenting a Virtual Boccia Challenge in collaboration with the Association québécoise des sports pour paralytiques cérébraux and Boccia Canada. Provincial, national, and international athletes, their entourage, officials, and the entire Défi sportif AlterGo community will be invited to participate in the challenge which will take place on social media starting April 12th, 2021.
Then, as part of the semaine de l’action bénévole, the team wanted to organize a “virtual happening” for its volunteers by hosting a “Bingo sportif” with prize drawings and surprise guest artists.
The Défi sportif AlterGo would like to thank all of its loyal partners who are essential in making this next edition unprecedented, certainly different, but no less captivating at the sporting and human levels.
All events will be streamed live on the AlterGo Facebook page. The complete program and other activities to discover are available at defisportif.com.
