You’ll be familiar with their faces; some of you see them every weekend in the four corners of Quebec, and some of you have been seeing them for years. Always there to ensure your safety, often present to remind you of the rules at pre-race meetings and sometimes, to your dismay, also to enforce the rules and impose (very few) penalties, Triathlon Québec officials play a major role in the running of events. Through this series of portraits, we’d like to introduce you to the men and women behind the whistle. Who knows, it might even inspire you to join the team!

We are pleased to spotlight Lise Dubé, an emblematic figure in the development of triathlon in Quebec and official (CTO) for Triathlon Quebec for the past fifteen years.

Triathlon Québec : Hello Lise, could you introduce yourself?

Lise Dubé : I ‘m a mother of three grown-up children, two of whom are still in school, and now a grandmother of two grandchildren. I’m 56, have a bachelor’s degree in business administration and have always been a business manager. For the past six years, I’ve been managing a Brunet pharmacy in Vaudreuil-Dorion. From the outset, I was a cyclist, a winter spinning enthusiast and an assiduous gym member. My first contact with triathlon was with the Tri-O-Lacs triathlon club, in 2005, when my youngest daughter was interested in trying it out. We enrolled her in the club, and as I was kept waiting for her during her many training sessions, I enrolled too. The following year, the club organized an official’s training course at the Collège Bourget for parents interested in taking part in events in a way other than as spectators. I went along, and the following summer, in 2006, I volunteered at a number of school triathlons in the region, mostly organized by club members who were teachers at the various schools. That’s how my involvement as an official began.

Triathlon Québec: So you’ve been an official with Triathlon Québec for fifteen years now?

Lise Dubé : I started as an official in 2006. In 2007, I became a provincial official, and in 2010 I think I was an official at almost every summer event. In 2011, I was named official of the year at the Triathlon Québec gala. In 2012, a serious bike accident in early August knocked me out and prevented me from officiating at the first IRONMAN Mont-Tremblant. That same year, I accepted the presidency of the Tri-O-Lacs club, a position I held until 2018. I also accepted a position on the Triathlon Québec Board of Directors in the fall of 2012, a position I held for six years. In 2013, I completed my NTO training in Toronto by officiating at the Canadian Championships. In the fall of 2013, at the TQ gala, I was awarded the “Personality of the Year” plaque. At the 2016 gala, I received a silver whistle for my ten years as an active official. In 2017, I took the CTO training course in Montreal, where several international officials had travelled for the ITU Montreal. I’ve officiated at two WTS World Championships, Edmonton in 2014 and Chicago in 2015. Since its inception, I’ve always been an official at Tremblant, either the 70.3 and/or the full. Despite the large number of major events, my favorites are the regional finals and the Quebec Games. I was a regional respondent for triathlon in the Sud-Ouest region for a few years, joining the Blainville event for the multi-region regional final, where I was technical delegate for several years. I’ve also been a technical delegate, chief official and official at several Quebec Games, including Gatineau 2010, Shawinigan 2012, Longueuil 2014 and the Canada Games in 2013. I was also involved in the organization of the Valleyfield Triathlon in 2013 as co-race director and in 2014 as race director and president of the board. In 2014, I was the recipient of the Dollard-Morin award for the Montérégie region, I was also nominated for a Maurice at the Sports Québec gala, for my involvement as a provincial and Canadian official, two consecutive years 2014 and 2015. I was also present at the Sports Québec gala, as a member of the Board of Directors, when Triathlon Québec won Federation of the Year in 2015. At Triathlon Québec’s thirtieth gala in 2018, I was one of thirty ambassadors, key figures in the development of triathlon in Quebec.

Triathlon Québec: Can you tell us a little more about what inspired you to become a triathlon official?

Lise Dubé: I completed my training as an official so that I could continue to be in the thick of things, despite the fact that I could no longer train and compete at the same level as before, following two serious cycling accidents in 2009 and 2012, which left me with permanent after-effects. What’s more, when you’re involved in amateur sport, you realize that without involvement, federated sport is not viable, and that without officials, there can be no official, large-scale events.

Triathlon Québec: After all these years, what motivates you to be an official every weekend?

Lise Dubé: I don’t do as many events as I used to, but I’d say that what really motivated me was the people, the athletes, the organizers and my fellow officials. We’re a family, and despite the seriousness of our role, we have a lot of fun together.

Triathlon Québec: What qualities do you think make a good Triathlon Québec official?

Lise Dubé: You have to love sport and have a great deal of respect for the effort the athletes have put into getting there, the effort the organizers have put into running the event, and have a sense of fairness and justice.

Triathlon Québec: As someone who has travelled the length and breadth of la belle province, what’s your favourite triathlon event?

Lise Dubé: There are too many to name, I like many for different reasons, but to name a few, I’d say for the atmosphere and the light in the eyes of the youngsters: the Quebec Games. For the grandiose display and the thrill of crossing the finish line: IRONMAN Mont-Tremblant, the full house. And for the thrill of seeing so many personal challenges completed at the very end of the season: Esprit de Montréal (I’m biased, of course, being part of the organization).

Triathlon Québec: Can you give us one or more reasons for becoming a triathlon official?

Lise Dubé: For the development of sport, support for events. No officials, no federated events, no federated events, no recognized athletes, and so on. It’s a chain!

Triathlon Québec: With all these events under your belt, you must have a little anecdote to share with us?

Lise Dubé: One that really made me laugh was when an athlete at an event asked me who was looking after the bikes while she was racing. She didn’t want it stolen. I tried to reassure her, she had a brand new hybrid bike of the year (smile), while 90% of the bikes present were worth more than hers (but that’s bad form). Still, she took no chances and padlocked her bike to the rack before leaving for the swim. I’m sure that, if she had persevered in this sport, and done several events afterwards, she’d be laughing about it herself today!

Triathlon Québec: Thank you, Lise, for this interview and for your involvement in Quebec’s triathlon family! See you this summer at our partner events!