One of the early pillars of the Journal de Québec suddenly died. Former sports director Claude Bédard died on Saturday at the age of 86.
The news came as a real shock to those close to the man who led the athletic department for 28 years, from 1969 to 1997.
Mr. Bédard was in good health and played 75 rounds of golf during the summer that had just ended, a sport he has always loved.
“It happened all of a sudden, no one expected it. It’s very sad, but at least he left without suffering,” suggested his partner Francine Bureau when she announced the sad news to the Journal.
A big role in the arrival of the Nordiques
In the middle is Claude Bédard in the press box at the Colisée de Québec, where he covered countless Nordiques games with his team, Albert Ladouceur and Claude Cadorette. Archive photo
It was Sept. 13, 1969, when Mr. Bédard joined the Journal after winning a championship in the Provincial Baseball League, a professional circuit, as general manager of the Quebec Indians.
One of his first tasks was to help revive professional ice hockey in Quebec. Behind the scenes, he used his many contacts and formed a tandem with the late Claude Larochelle of Le Soleil to promote the arrival of the AMH in Quebec.
The two rivals but accomplices had even met one of the founders of the World Hockey Association (WHA), Gary Davidson, in California to praise Quebec’s achievements.
“We told him it was possible to find investors in Quebec. When we got home, the media said it wouldn’t amount to anything, that we should forget about the project. I remember being shouted at in the street,” Mr Bédard said last year during an interview as part of the 50th anniversary of the Nordiques’ birth.
The team moved to the city in 1972 and rocked Quebec until 1995, long after the AMH merged with the NHL in 1979.
“The odds that it would work were probably one in a million, and the worst part is that it worked. Without moving to the AMH, Quebec would never have reached the NHL one day,” he added in the same interview.
A great team
Claude Bédard has always said he is proud of his team at the Journal de Québec. In the photo he is accompanied by Robert Jutras, Claude Allaire, Pierre Lachance and Albert Ladouceur.
Claude Bédard left his mark on the Quebec sports world, not only as a journalist and sports director, but also as an analyst who covered Nordiques games on television.
Although he was a professional with a thousand and one hats for a long time, in his heart he always considered the Journal de Québec to be his family.
“My story is, above all, my team. It was stronger than anything else. The strength of our sports department was that we managed to put together a tenacious, committed and determined team, always characterized by the same competitive spirit. The boys tried hard and were enthusiastic because the atmosphere was good. They were willing to follow me,” Mr. Bédard said during another interview, this time on the journal’s 50th anniversary in 2017.
“Québecor is still part of my family. These years remained anchored in my heart. It’s been 20 years since I’ve been at the Journal and I still get asked about it everywhere. I have worked tirelessly and these years have been difficult on a family level, but I have no regrets,” he continued.
In addition to his partner Francine, Claude Bédard leaves to mourn his son, his partner’s two children and his five grandchildren.