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Sledge Hockey Hero Benoit St-Amand set to Motivate Quebec Students

26 January 2011

Ottawa ON- (January 26, 2010)
Passion and dedication are two things that come easily to Benoit St-Amand. That’s why the 2010 Paralympic Sledge Hockey player, is eager to share his love of sports and pursuit of his dreams with students at Harold Napper Elementary school in Brossard QC, as a Motivate Canada - Esteem Team Athlete Role Model on February 2, 2011.

St-Amand has been devoting his free time as a spokesperson/motivator with Motivate Canada’s Esteem Team since May 2010. A Motivate Canada program, the Esteem Team is made up of a group of top-level athletes from all across Canada who deliver the positive message of goal setting and healthy living to youth through their personal stories of struggles, perseverance and success.

St-Amand, who has been playing hockey since the age of three, knows firsthand what it takes to become a successful athlete. Not only has St-Amand been on a team that won gold at the 2006 Paralympics in Torino, but he has also received medals from the 2008 IPC Hockey World Championships and the 2007 World Sledge Hockey Challenge.

Yet, in order to achieve success, St-Amand has also had to overcome some great obstacles.
At age 15, St-Amand was diagnosed with a malignant tumour on his right tibia. After undergoing months of operations and physiotherapy, he agreed to have his leg amputated above the knee. Instead of letting this hardship get him down, St-Amand, decided to push on and he worked hard to recover. This experience positively impacted St-Amand’s outlook on life, and contributed to his resolve to continue to participate in sports and encourage others to do the same.

“Since he first received Esteem Team training in 2009, it was obvious that Ben’s positive attitude and enthusiasm for sport was contagious. The Esteem Team is pleased to have such a talented athlete on board as one of our motivators,” says Esteem Team Manager Mark Sluban.

St-Amand first began to play Sledge Hockey after first watching a broadcast of the Canadian Sledge Hockey team in 2002. He began playing in Montreal, and after only two years he landed a spot on the National team playing forward. He later switched to goaltending.

Today, St-Amand is eager to continue to share his passion with others. His positivity and desire to succeed in sports have inspired many youth to set-goals, and work hard just as he has.
On February 2, 2010 students at Harold Napper Elementary school, in Brossard QC will have the opportunity to be educated on some of the lessons St-Amand has learned on his road to success.
The Esteem Team is a program of Motivate Canada, a national organization that specializes in the research and development of programs that help young people meet life’s challenges and reach their full potential. For more information about the Esteem Team, please visit: www.esteemteam.com

Media Advisory
Who: Benoit St-Amand
What: Esteem Team Athlete Role Model and Paralympic Gold Medalist
Where: Harold Napper Elementary, Brossard, Quebec
When: February 2, 2011 at 1:00 p.m.
Media Contact:
Andrea Ruttan, Communications and Fund Development Manager
Andrea@motivatecanada.ca  

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