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Météo: Laval, 11 mars 2010 / 5°C / Ciel dégagé / Vents: 20 Km/h / Humidité relative: 38 %

"It's not just about football: I felt my mother's presence"

Newest Alouette Martin Bédard shares gridiron dreams with mother Sylvie, who passed away much too soon

par Sylvain Lamarre
Voir tous les articles de Sylvain Lamarre
Article mis en ligne le 16 juillet 2009 à 14:37
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Martin Bédard, pictured in the colours of the University of Connecticut Huskies, where he showed enough talent to be drafted by the CFL's Montreal Alouettes. (Photo: Courtesy of the University of Connecticut)

"It's not just about football: I felt my mother's presence"

Newest Alouette Martin Bédard shares gridiron dreams with mother Sylvie, who passed away much too soon

When he set foot in Calgary's MacMahon Stadium July 1 for his first professional football game Martin Bedard's first thought was of his mother, Sylvie Desbiens, who died of Leukemia in 2006 at 47.

"I think of her whenever I put on my uniform. She spurred me to succeed in football and in life," Bédard told Courrier Laval in an interview. "I felt my mother's presence throughout the game in Calgary. She was a true source of inspiration and motivation for me."

Successful debut

Although unable to sleep the night before, Martin did not feel fatigue the next day. The long-snap specialist did not waste his chance to impress in his professional baptism, making perfect deliveries to Ben Calhoun who held the ball for all of David Duvall's six field goals (in six attempts) in the 40-27 Als win.

"I dreamed of playing U.S. College Football. Then I dreamed of playing pro. It's the result of a plan I've worked on since age 10," he acknowledged. "I look forward to playing in front of family and friends at McGill Stadium. The crowd is fantastic," he added, last Wednesday, the day before the Als were to play Edmonton, a game they won 50-16.

Heart-wrenching decision

In 2006 after making the roster of the NCAA'a Connecticut Huskies, he was given the coach's permission to attend his mother's funeral but chose instead to stay with the team and play his first game.

"I have no regrets. My mother would have wanted me to play. She would have told me to stay. I had mixed feelings. I was happy to be playing in my first game in the U.S., but I also felt really sad that I would never see my mother again."

It started in Laval

Martin Bédard knows he owes a lot to Laval minor football, where his athletic odyssey began as a member of the Laval (Centre-Sud) Cowboys. It was the first step in the football education that would take him all the way to the NCAA in 2006 and eventually to the Canadian Football League (CFL) in 2009.

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