The Mauricie school sports world is in mourning after the sudden death of a well-known football coach in the region.
Highly esteemed coach and teacher Jimmy Thompson died suddenly Saturday morning at the age of 56. Well known for his love for football, he left an important mark on all those who crossed his path.
Many memories and anecdotes, the relatives of Jimmy Thompson are upset two days after his death.
“In a split second, my life fell apart. Our projects that we had … My life no longer has any meaning, ”dropped his spouse, Chantal Ménard.
“You don’t forget Jimmy Thompson. He’s so alive it’s hard to imagine him not moving right now because it’s almost impossible,” added his sister, Nancy Thompson.
While spending time on his sailboat this weekend, he suffered a heart attack at the age of 56. His loved ones remember the importance of enjoying life, much like Jimmy knew how to do.
A songwriter in his spare time, he was best known for having trained hundreds of young footballers from the Gothics team at the Pionniers high school in Trois-Rivières.
For his colleagues, his students and his former players, the passage of Jimmy Thompson will have been more than positive. He will have marked the spirits.
“He was not a coach like the others. The other coaches will focus on “our goal is to win against them”, but Jimmy, he really wanted to create a family before the victory, “said a Gothics football player, Xavier Glazer.
“Jimmy, it was he who transmitted the passion to me. I played three years in elementary school before coming here and never liked football and when I came and started playing for Jimmy, that’s when it started. He is someone who occupied a big place for me in my life and he will continue to occupy it, ”explained a former Gothics player who is now a team coach himself thanks to the legacy of Jimmy, Mikaël Leblanc.
“Jimmy was a motivator. He had a philosophy, it was that all young people, regardless of background, can be part of a sports team, “added the director of the Secondary School of the Pioneers, Jonathan Bradley.
“It’s a blow for the big family of Gothics, but we are tightly knit. Currently the management is in support for the students and the members of the staff, ”said the current director of football at the Pioneers, Hugues Durand.
Jimmy Thompson was the Cataractes’ physical trainer when they won the Memorial Cup 10 years ago.
“There are a lot of people who worked behind the scenes in winning the cup in 2012 and Jimmy is one of them. We have often said it, we are a team that was extremely in shape, extremely prepared when we started the Memorial Cup and I think that there is a big part of that that goes to Jimmy and the people who surrounded it,” recalled team general manager Martin Mondoux.
A tribute will be paid to Jimmy Thompson at the next game on Wednesday.