With more than 430 teams, some 800 matches to be played between thousands of participants, this is a record year for the Orange Tournament.
A host of teams are playing at the volleyball this weekend as part of the Orange Tournament in Sept-Îles. After years of inactivity, one of the most important competitions in the country is breaking records in an atmosphere mixing humor and excitement.
We can no longer take for granted what we did before, underlines Jeannot Vich, the president of the organizing committee of the Orange Tournament.
The last tournament took place in May 2019. So yes, we were feverish, he admits.
Jeannot Vich, president of the Orange Tournament organizing committee
With more than 430 teams registered, some 800 matches to be played between thousands of participants, it is an imposing organization that had to be orchestrated from September. Nine months later, the tournament is making a comeback.
Despite the inactivity of the past few years, everything seems to be running as usual, reports the person responsible for compiling the Orange Tournament games, Éric Sénéchal. Year after year, it's amazing how well it's going, he remarks.
The good mood and humor encountered in the field bear witness to the enthusiasm surrounding the event.
We are old mothers who are starting to play together again, we are excited, we're having fun, says Laurence Bettez, player of the Mothershangover team. As their name suggests, the tournament is an opportunity to have fun.
David Cardinal is making his fourth appearance in the tournament with the Old wounded.You have to be either old or injured to play with us, he jokes.
For their part, Marie -Eve Bergeron and the Spring Babes promise their opponents that they will be girly on the court. Like many, they made long journeys to join the tournament, about ten hours away.
According to the president of the organizing committee, Jeannot Vich, approximately 1,500 people come from outside the region on the occasion of the Orange Tournament.
The success of the competition, after four years of stoppage due to the pandemic, reassures its organizers who now look to the future. We will start thinking about improvements in the next few years, promises Jeannot Vich.
Based on information from Charles-Étienne Drouin
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