VANOC attends the Rendez-vous de la francophonie 2009

Rendez-vous de la francophonie 2009 events and activities celebrating diversity were held across Canada in each province and territory between March 6 and 22. Rendez-vous de la francophonie has been held annually since 1999, has a different theme each year and is an integral part of Canadian celebrations surrounding the Journée internationale de la francophonie (International Francophone Day) on March 20.

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) celebrated this event that was organized by the Conseil fédéral du Pacifique and the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique at the Vancouver Public Library Main Branch.

With less than a year before the start of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, it seemed the perfect timing to add themes of youth and Olympic Games to the national theme of diversity. The local celebrations were organized around these themes in addition to the values of the Olympic movement.

The Vancouver 2010 mascots, Miga, Quatchi and Sumi celebrating the Francophone Day on March 20th, 2009 The event was designed for families and included activities for children, visits from several artists as well as an engraving exhibition featuring artists from around the world. Miga, Quatchi and Sumi, the Vancouver 2010 mascots, were also a part of the event and were very popular!

Encouraging the public to get involved

Anne-Marie Lefrançois, Olympian, retired alpine skier and RBC Olympian attended the event. She shared her Olympic experience from the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games with the audience, even showing the bib she had worn during a race. “I want to encourage people and youth to enjoy the Olympic Games in Vancouver and to get involved,” she said.

Lefrançois is in her final year of studying engineering at the University of British Columbia. She’s very involved in the RBC Olympians Program, a program with 40 Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athlete participants. “We’re doing presentations in schools, chambers of commerce and in RBC branches about our Olympic experiences. I also work with public relations relating to their sponsorship with Vancouver 2010,” she said. Lefrançois also appreciates the opportunity to learn about Paralympic sports.

Lefrançois competed in alpine skiing for 17 years and won two Canadian Championships in 2001 and 2002. She’s still involved with the national team by helping with the training. “I sometimes go to training camps in Colorado during summers, I help the girls a little bit, but with university and my job, I have less time,” she explained. The future engineer is also on the Alpine Canada board of directors as an athlete representative.

VANOC’s presence at the Rendez-vous de la francophonie 2009 event on March 20 shows its commitment to offer bilingual Canada’s Games, to get the British Columbia francophone community involved in the Games and excited by this opportunity.

Learn more about VANOC’s commitment to reflect the linguistic duality of Canada.