Almost three years ago, Frédérique Lavigne was a little discouraged. The then 13-year-old judoka was no longer able to practice her sport due to a specific pandemic that led to an unexpected containment of everyone.
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Maybe you remember her. We had told his story. She told us that staying motivated is difficult, especially with training via video conferencing. But she persevered.
“It obviously worked, I no longer have any motivation problems. Everything went really well,” she confided in us on the phone.
And how did it work! Last week she won the 70+lbs gold medal at the Canada Games, in addition to winning gold with her Quebec teammates in the team event. All of this earned her the title of provincial standard-bearer at the closing ceremony of the Games, presented in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.
Frédérique admits the forced break was difficult, but it is her father Vincent who lifts the veil on the painful moments his daughter went through.
“In the beginning it was very difficult for her, we were worried and after that we were proud of her courage. She rolled up her sleeves.
“Her friends who were in physical education could keep training if she couldn’t. She persevered and several of her friends who were in physical education programs dropped out as she continued. »
And Frédérique herself never doubted that she would persevere.
“Oddly, I never wanted to let go because I knew I could go further. I’ve learned so much, I no longer have any excuses to train. »
strength of character
Visibly proud of his daughter, who turns 17 at the end of the month, Vincent Lavigne reveals that he and his wife Julie have discovered an even greater strength of character in their daughter than they knew.
“I suspected it, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover a ‘mental toughness’ that allowed him to get through this and come back strong. »
The father points out in passing that his daughter experienced an additional ordeal due to the change in weight class.
“She’s had her ups and downs and she fell into the open category, but there are girls who weigh up to 100 kilos. She has partially re-learned her judo since last year’s Canadian Championships. »
Unfavorable draw
The pandemic has meant that competition on the Canadian scene has now intensified, explains Frédérique.
“It cleaned up the athletes and made it even more difficult to compete in Canada. There’s a lot of judo girls missing, there’s a gap in our generation. »
In Charlottetown, she had a tough draw against Alberta’s Mariana Karas in her first fight.
“She’s my pet, she hit me all the time for a year, I wanted to cry when I hit her. It validated the fact that everyone is beatable and has a weak point. »
She also defeated Karas a second time in the very last bout of the team competition finals to confirm the gold medal for Quebec.
When we caught Frédérique earlier this week, she was on her way to Rivière-du-Loup for the Quebec Games finals after spending an evening at home washing up between the two competitions. And on Thursday, she added another gold medal to her harvest.
Olympic dream
After a tournament against her friends from the provincial scene at the Quebec Games, the Montreal native will turn her eyes to the international scene.
“In the near future I want to start international competitions because things are going well in Canada and Quebec. I know it gets harder when it comes to competitions. »
As for the Olympics, there’s no question thinking about Paris next year or even Los Angeles in 2028. Judo is a late developing sport so it will be more likely to think of Brisbane in 2032. She will then have 26 years old. But she refuses to project herself that far.
“I’ll get there little by little. Of course I would like to go there, but I will do it at my own pace and step by step. »