LAB Coaches | A memorable final match featuring Gregor Jelonek

On Monday, June 19, the final meeting of the 2022–23 cohort of the LAB Entraineur·es Montréal program took place. It was a memorable occasion for the eight coaches in attendance, who had the opportunity to reflect on their experience alongside the legendary Gregor Jelonek, an Olympic speed skating coach.

Jelonek began his coaching career with Canada’s national junior team in 1997 before being promoted to the senior ranks in 2002. Based near the Anneau Gaétan Boucher in Quebec City, he has guided several Quebec athletes—including Laurent Dubreuil, Alex Boisvert-Lacroix, Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu, Alexandre St-Jean, François-Olivier Roberge, and Muncef Ouardi—to podium finishes on the international stage.

Once again, the program brought together coaches from different disciplines and diverse backgrounds to meet, exchange ideas, and share their expertise with the goal of improving their athletes’ performance. These stimulating and sometimes even moving exchanges also opened the door to a process of self-reflection that is leading them to rethink their traditional approaches. The coaches realized that physical conditioning alone was no longer enough to guarantee athletic success, but that it was also crucial to take into account the overall well-being of their athletes.

“You have to care about your athletes. If you don’t care about them, it won’t work.” Gregor Jelonek

These meetings have helped spark a revolution in the way sports training is approached, by emphasizing athletes’ mental and physical health and promoting a holistic approach to athletic performance. As such, LAB Entraineur·es Montréal hopes to serve as a model for the dissemination of best practices in the field of sports training.

This LAB was also the last one led by Marc-André Duchesneau in his role as coach development advisor; he has been the driving force behind this project since its inception. The collaboration between Marc-André and the Conseil du sport will not end there, and he will pass the torch to Stéphanie Poirier and Nicolas Masbourian, who will take the reins of LAB Entraineur·es Montréal starting next fall.