A brand new athletic studies program in women’s hockey will see the light of day at Saint-Georges High School in the fall of 2024. With the creation of the Women’s Professional Hockey League (LPHF) last August, young girls can once again dream bigger now.
Diane Bélanger is responsible for registrations and logistics for the women’s ice hockey tournament held annually in Saint-Georges and Saint-Prosper. His organization is responsible for this new program. So we welcomed him to our offices to find out everything about this project.
” It’s a lot of work in addition to the hockey tournament we do every spring and the development program for girls from 4 to 11 years old. But here we add that in 12-17 years. We offer something interesting for women’s hockey in Beauce! “, she confided to us in an interview.
There is still a difference with a team that is a member of RSEQ, as it is an individual development program. ” We are not forming a hockey team to play against other teams, because there are very few of them. Young girls are already going to play with minor hockey, or with the Huskies or other teams, and come to improve their skills. »
Registration and selection
The organization is preparing for an open day at the Deux Rives school in Saint-Georges on November 22, where young girls will be able to start enrolling. Then, in February, girls who are already in high school will be able to enroll. He will then be able to attend the program along the way and follow sports studies during his remaining years in high school.
” At the moment, we still have no idea how many young girls we will be able to accept in the group. We are aiming for about fifteen to make it a sustainable group. We can’t wait to see. » The program is already eagerly awaited. ” I have already received calls for information, as it was introduced in some primary schools last week. »
There are already a lot of young girls playing minor hockey in Beauce, so the organization doesn’t think they will have too much difficulty filling the team. Especially since there are several similar programs in Quebec, but this is the first in the region.
In order to evaluate young people, selection camps will be held in December for secondary schools 1-2, then in April for secondary schools 3-4-5. “ It is not in this program that someone decides to start playing hockey. It’s actually about honing skills, not learning to play. You have to have a certain level of hockey. »
Progress to perform
Therefore, there will be six afternoons of hockey in a nine-day cycle. The other three days will be various activities, weight training, stretching, yoga, etc. There will also be lecturers who will talk about sports psychology, nutrition, etc. The goal is to have a global offer to help girls improve. “ These young people will still play on their teams, but they will have the opportunity to play a lot more hockey each week. »
Diane Bélanger specifies that ” On a statistical level, we see that girls who play high school sports have a greater chance of good success later in life, to remain active and to have more responsible positions. »
Hockey tournament for women
The eleventh women’s hockey tournament will take place from April 26 to 28 in the Saint-Georges and Saint-Prosper arenas. Between 45 and 50 teams are expected. The organization is currently looking for partners who believe in the development of women’s hockey.
For all information about the sports-study program or the tournament, visit the website thfst-georges.com or write to (email protected)
