Catherine’s turn to carry the Roberge judo torch

In the Roberge household, judo is a way of life. In two weeks, Catherine Roberge will become the third member of this Beauport family to participate in the Summer Olympic Games. Now 22 years old, Catherine Roberge is the youngest of six children in her family. She was the fifth to practice judo and the fourth to make the national team. Her brother took part in the 1992 Games, in Barcelona, while her sister Sophie participated in the 2000 Games, in Sydney.

What an outstanding family résumé ! But will Catherine be the first one to come home with a medal around her neck ?

« I hope to win a medal, but I have more modest goals now. I want to finish inside the top-7 of my category. Depending on my schedule during the competition, I think a medal would be possible. For that to happen, all of my experiences in the past few years have to be well used at this particular moment. I'll have to be in top shape on many levels : physically, psychologically, technically, strategically. Let's not forget it will be my first Olympic Games, and that I'm going there to gain experience. Therefore, finishing in the top-7 in the -70 kg category would already be satisfying,» Roberge said.

Acquiring olympic experience ? Does she already have the 2008 Games in Beijing in mind ?
« It's evident that I plan to take part in the 2008 Games. If I don't win a medal in four years, I'll have to consider going to the 2012 Games. At that point, I'll be 30 years old, and it will be time to move on,» Roberge added.

A key event at 10 years old

Catherine agrees that seeing her brother Patrick participating in the 1992 Barcelona Games was the key element that inspired her Olympic dream.

« I was only 10 years old at the time. I was in Barcelona in 1992, and being there made me want to practice judo as seriously as today, to eventually participate in the Summer Games. When I saw the emotion and the excitement the Games generated, I said to myself I was going to live this experience one day, » Roberge said.

A member of the national team since 1999, Catherine is very grateful of the important changes made to help amateur athletes on a financial basis.

« I have been blessed in life. I arrived on the scene when things were easier in judo. A new system has been installed that allows us to fully concentrate on our sport, without having financial problems. For example, I was away from home for eight months last year, just to prepare for the Games. This would have been impossible a few years ago. My two brothers (Patrick, Maxime) and my sister (Sophie) had to work and go to school, while they were competing on the international level. Honestly, I don't know how they did it. I tried to combine judo and school for a year, and it was disastrous, » Roberge added.

After the Games, she'd like to take time and study German in college.
« I've always been drawn to languages. I wanted to try and learn Japanese, but it was too difficult. I spent a month in Japan and I only learned eight words. I will start over in German and try to pick up Spanish along the way. Eventually, I'd like to work for an embassy outside of Canada, and learning different languages can only help me,» Roberge declared.

« It's another positive aspect of the changes that took place over the years. My certificate as a high performance athlete allows me to accumulate fully paid semesters in college. I think I could earn a master's degree without spending too much money. Let's face it, we're not competing in judo for money, but for medals. You can talk about this to Nicolas Gill. If your career ends at 30 years old and you have debts around $25 000 to $30 000 when you're out of school, it's a tough start. Fortunately, that is not the case anymore,» concludes Roberge.

Right now, Catherine Roberge doesn't have to be worried about her career after judo. She can fully concentrate on her training schedule before taking the mat and fulfill her Olympic dream, on August 18th.