Sports Minister Isabelle Charest is upset by allegations of the gang rape of two Voltigeurs de Drummondville players in 2016.
• Also read: Another story of gang rape in the QMJHL
“Of course I’m shocked. It’s always the sacrifice that comes to mind, “said the Minister in charge of Sport, Leisure and Outdoors on Thursday on the sidelines of the inauguration of the Maison du loisirs et du sport in Montreal. .
“The first reflex is bad words that come to me [en tête]. I will not repeat them…”
Earlier this week, Radio-Canada announced that Noah Corson was accused of sexually assaulting a young girl under the age of 16 along with two other minors, one of whom was also a member of the Hockey League team Major Junior from Quebec (LHJMQ ) . The latter two have already pleaded guilty before the juvenile section. Former Canadian badass Shayne Corson’s son is set to return to court this summer.
According to Ms. Charest, we haven’t finished hearing about aggression in sport.
“Others will come out because we finally have mechanisms to denounce. We finally have an entry point for the victims and not only for the sports circles,” she argued.
“I think people are becoming more aware that these situations are unacceptable and that they need to be denounced loud and clear. We used to keep it to ourselves, it was personal and we didn’t interfere. There is a collective consciousness. »
To ponder
The three-time Olympic speed skating champion wants to take care of the victims, but she also wants to stop these attacks. To achieve this, awareness raising and workshops like the ones QMJHL players received earlier in the season on sexual consent are possible solutions.
“We are reviewing what resources are needed to ensure that all complaints are received and dealt with,” Ms Charest explained. We’re not done investing resources yet, and education is one of my main concerns. »
The initiator of the workshops offered to QMJHL players last fall, writer, director and political scientist Léa Clermont-Dion, had mentioned to the journal earlier this week that the experience would be renewed every year.
Minister Charest pledged her support for the QMJHL.
To do the housework
The sex scandals that darkened the world of junior hockey notably led to the resignation of Hockey Canada’s board of directors. The association recently announced the candidates who could form the new CA, a situation that pleases the Brome-Missisquoi CAQ member.
“I find the composition very interesting. If I’m not mistaken, there is only one person who has a direct connection to hockey: Cassie Campbell-Pascall [ancienne capitaine de l’équipe féminine canadienne]. The staff have expertise in governance, law, litigation and mediation. We’re completely out of the dynamics of hockey culture. I find that very interesting. You are there for a year. It’s short, but we’re doing a lot of cleaning. »