“Mr. Hugo Houle” visiting Premier Tech

(Rivière-du-Loup) With its five or six large buildings of resolutely modern architecture, one has the impression of landing on university grounds.

Simon Drouin
The Press

The place is also called Campus Premier Tech. Rather, it is the “world headquarters” of the Rivière-du-Loup multinational, which specializes in horticultural and agricultural products, computerized systems, water and the environment, 3D visualization and so on.

But the shop offering cycling clothing and the jerseys hanging on a wall in the employee entrance remind us that we are truly entering cycling territory.

On Wednesday, cycling was even more in the spotlight for the 1,400 “team members” who work on the Campus. “Mr. Hugo Houle”, as presented by the CEO and majority shareholder of Premier Tech, Jean Bélanger, was on his way to highlight his historic stage victory in the Tour de France.

Arrived for lunch, the hero of the day was joined later by the six teammates of Israel-Premier Tech who will accompany him to the Grands Prix Cyclistes de Québec and Montréal, Friday and Sunday, including Quebecer Guillaume Boivin.

After a dinner under a tent where all the “team members” were invited, the most valiant were able to mix with the riders for their last real training session in anticipation of the weekend’s competitions.

After passing through Rivière-du-Loup, the group followed the river to Kamouraska, where coffee and pastries awaited the cyclists. The seven professionals then had to extend to Saint-Jean-Port-Joli before showering and returning to Quebec in vehicles.

Earlier in front of reporters, Houle said he didn’t anticipate any big changes despite his newfound fame.

“I am above all happy to be here, to live the experience of the Grands Prix”, shared the 23^e du Tour, surrounded by Bélanger and the owner of the formation, Sylvan Adams.

“I’m curious to see what it’s going to look like this year following the good press I got during the month of July. Of course, the preparation remains the same. I’m happy to enjoy the beautiful atmosphere and show people back home what I do all year round in Europe. »

Extra pressure? Okay, the main interested party almost seemed surprised by the question, recalling that he was surrounded by a “very, very solid team” for these events which are likely to be decisive for the status of the Israeli-Canadian formation next year.

Apart from this whirlwind stay in Bas-du-Fleuve, the 31-year-old athlete refused all other requests. This has included depriving himself of visiting certain relatives and friends, the only aspect of his growing notoriety with which the resident of Monaco deals less easily.

“I saw absolutely no one. It is difficult to give time as I would like to everyone. It requires some privacy. Now I have to make choices. I can’t be everywhere at the same time. This is the somewhat boring part of the story: saying no more regularly. »

That said, Bélanger, who became a friend over the course of their relationship that dates back to 2017, stresses how the man hasn’t changed.

“People are proud and happy, and Hugo gives them back. Its status has changed, but not how it thinks, unfolds and perceives itself. His way of interacting with people remained the same. He is humble. It’s nice to see because there are people for whom it doesn’t take much for them to no longer fit through doorways. »

Since his return to the country at the beginning of last week, Hugo Houle has been able to better measure how his success on July 19 has marked the imagination, even outside the bike. His reaction to the finish in Foix when he dedicated his victory to his late younger brother left no one indifferent.

“It is sure that the story with my brother touched a lot of people. The emotion speaks for itself when looking at the photos and videos. There is the sporting side, but there is also a lot of the human side which has brought a certain pride to Quebec. »

From there to compare his stunt to other great moments in the history of sport in Quebec…

“I have a hard time saying: OK, that’s what I did. I saw it a little smaller… People still hailed this summer’s achievement. »

And it still resonates as far as the Bas-du-Fleuve, where a cheerful band of team members worked to remind him of it.

“Not healthy for sport”

The meeting with Hugo Houle at Premier Tech was an opportunity for Sylvan Adams and Jean Bélanger to recall their “long-term” commitment to cycling, regardless of the status of the team next year. Israel-Premier Tech is under threat of dropping back to the second tier if it fails to pick up the points needed to move up at least two rungs to 18^e place among the WorldTeams by the end of the season. Adams had even offered his “personal guarantee” that such relegation would not happen before the start of the Tour de France. “We are living in a situation that I would describe as a case of force majeure,” defended the patron of Montreal origin on Wednesday. COVID-19 was particularly devastating for its workforce, which for example finished at three out of eight runners in Paris in July. The owner explained that he was part of a group of seven teams “in the gray zone of the points” who are trying to reach an agreement with the International Cycling Union. “We are united on the issue. It would be very bad for any team to be relegated. It’s not healthy for the sport. So there are discussions. »