A great ambassador for tennis in Quebec, François Godbout has had a brilliant career in the sport. He represented Canada as a member of the Davis Cup from 1959 to 1964 and again in 1969. He was ranked among Canada’s top ten players.
He was Legal Counsel to the Organizing Committee of the Montreal Olympic Games in 1976. From 1988 until his retirement he was a judge at the Montreal Juvenile Court, which became the Juvenile Division of the Quebec Court.
He is still wearing his white Canadian Davis Cup team jacket. This jacket is as valuable to him as a judge’s robe in the Supreme Court of Canada.
Priest or tennis player?
You always have to remember the times. I had completed my classical studies, which was a good basis for a career as a pastor. There was a small problem, because it usually takes eight years to complete your classical studies. I had to add two more years because I was twice expelled from Collège Notre-Dame for indiscipline.
You’re from Waterloo.
I would like to mention Waterloo, Quebec, which had a population of barely 4,000.
You could never resist your father.
My father Louis, a forest engineer, was born in 1892. He died at the age of 60 and I was only 14 years old. I missed an aspect of my youth that I think is important. I could never defy my father. However, he did instill in me a love for music and reading. I played the piano when I was six years old.
Was it hard that your mother was never proud of you?
For my mother Emilienne there were only two options in life: school and work. She was never proud of me.
What upset you the most?
I wanted to be a tennis player. She was never proud of my career choice. It still hurts me occasionally. I became a juvenile court judge. Would she be proud of me?
Summer vacation with family.
In the summer we went to Notre-Dame-du-Portage, very close to Rivière-du-Loup, and to Saint-Éloi, the birthplace of my father and his cousin, former Quebec Prime Minister Adelard Godbout.
Your passion for tennis…
I wasn’t even 10 years old when I went to the forum with my father, not to see the Canadian, but to see the best tennis players in the world. After that, one of the Sainte-Croix fathers from Notre-Dame College encouraged me to play tennis. My favorite player was Quebec’s Henri Rochon.
When you were seven you imagined playing at Wimbledon.
The tennis courts at Wimbledon are grass courts. I played alone for hours, hitting balls against the wall of the house. There was grass in front of the wall, just like at Wimbledon.
You heard tennis on the radio.
Well seated in the living room, with the curtains drawn, I listened intently to the voices of Michel Normandin and René Lecavalier describing the Davis Cup games.
They won Canadian championships.
When I was 13, I played against the best in the 15-year-old category. My achievements opened the door for me to be selected for the Davis Cup squad.
The legendary Rod Laver was “the turning point” in your career.
The Davis Cup tournament was held in Montreal when Canada faced Australia. Despite the unbelievable heat, I was so cold that my whole body was shaking. In the first set, I beat one of the greatest players in tennis history, Rod Laver, 9-7 because there was no tiebreaker at the time. That win was the turning point in my career.
You played at Wimbledon.
The first time was like a dream. I go to the luxurious players’ locker room near Center Court, where the locker room attendant tells me that my name is not on the players’ list.
did you go back home
I thought my dream just collapsed. Suddenly he tells me that there is a second dressing room. My name was listed. Unlike locker room 1, where there was both a TV and sneakers, the great luxury in locker room 2 was a hook to hang my laundry on.
You ended up playing it three times.
The first time with Robert Bédard we had success in doubles. The second time, just like the third time, I immediately went to locker room 2. However, the third time, the attendant referred me to locker room 1. I always mention to my friends with a smile that I didn’t do this play on center court but occupy the center court locker room.
Your grandson Maximilien corrected you in terms of the number of defeats in two sets with 0:6.
The first time, a man named Jeff Arnold at the Canadian Championship and eventual Quebecer Robert Bédard accomplished the same feat. Last week my grandson pointed out that I had just lost 6-0 for the third straight game, this time to him. And to tease me a little more, he added, “Grandpa’s first time two days in a row against the same guy.”
Your family has played an important role in your life.
Our two wonderful sons Louis and Christian as well as our three grandchildren are the source of motivation in our lives for my wife Sibylla and me. Next year we will celebrate our 60th wedding anniversary.
