Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean Primed to Become a Model Region for Sports Development

Le Quotidien was able to speak with Sylvain Saindon mid-week, who was visiting Saguenay for the first time since before the pandemic. He spoke with the main speakers, starting with the head of the Pionniers sports-study program, Billy Bilodeau.

For Mr. Saindon, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean has the necessary elements to become a model for regions positioned far from major centers.

“We are creating a development model specific to the region,” he announced in an interview. We have to mobilize people, but we are on a good track at the moment. At the provincial level, we remain a sport in a period of growth, which forces us to innovate every year, to do things differently. With 1,500 players in a region, it’s normal to have a different model than if there are 300.”

This structure would apply at a young age, from players aged 11 to the M17 AAA Quebec Development Network with the Pionniers du Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean. All this with the ultimate goal of providing premises for the Voyageurs de Jonquière, in the Quebec Junior Elite Baseball League.

The head of the Pionniers’ baseball sports-studies program, Billy Bilodeau, was able to speak with the director of player development at Baseball Québec, Sylvain Saindon.

Sylvain Saindon is convinced that with the quality of the facilities and the participants, this attempt at reform can only be a success.

“If we are a little creative in view of the summer, Saguenay could become an exemplary region in development practices,” revealed the development director. We have very interesting players here and Baseball Quebec is very receptive to offering a development formula specific to remote regions such as Saguenay, Bas-Saint-Laurent and Outaouais.”

This desire to solidify the base of the pyramid was often conveyed by regional stakeholders in the not-so-distant past. The Baseball Quebec organization is visibly ready to step on the accelerator.

“I am convinced that within four to five years, there will be fewer and fewer players from outside the region who go to the Voyageurs, and that’s a bit of the goal too,” raised Sylvain Saindon, impressed by the infrastructures of the Saguenay Soccer Stadium which benefit the hundred players in school baseball programs, including the sport-study program located in Jonquière.

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“I was obviously charmed by the new facilities offered by the City of Saguenay. In the province, there are not many other sports-study baseball programs that have such good and beautiful facilities.”

— Sylvain Saindon, director of player development at Baseball Québec

The only downside is that women’s baseball is not experiencing the same progression in terms of registrations as elsewhere in Quebec. Sylvain Saindon would like to see “a little more leadership” in the region to promote sport.

The head of the Pionniers’ sports-study baseball program, Billy Bilodeau, surrounded by assistants Éric Goulet and Vincent Dantinne. Absent in the photo, the head coach of the U17 AAA team, Jean-Michel Tremblay, will be back for a second season.

Stability among the Pioneers

In the same vein, the Pionniers du Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean M17 AAA have confirmed the return of the same group of coaches as last season. Head coach Jean-Michel Tremblay will be supported by Éric Goulet and Vincent Dantinne, with the difference that Billy Bilodeau, assistant last summer, returns full-time to his observer functions as head of the development program. regional AAA and AA.

“I want to have a vision from the outside, while on the pitch, you see the match in another way,” he explained. By being in the stands, you see the different aspects that will allow me to ensure better follow-up with the coaches and players. It will also allow me to see more matches, at different levels, during the summer.

For the rest, stability is essential for the M17 AAA formation. That doesn’t mean that nothing will change.

“We want better player development, increase the training volume,” said Billy Bilodeau. We also want to better select our players, we won’t just want the most talented, we’ll take good individuals. If the best is a player who can pose a problem, we will possibly pass our turn.

Host of the U17 AAA Development Network mid-season tournament for the past two seasons, the Pioneers organization is trying it again this year. Since the director of development at Baseball Quebec was in Saguenay, Billy Bilodeau was able to promote the local candidacy, even if the proofs are already in place.

2024-01-19 18:45:16
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