Still teaching; Students of Bourdeau carry on in tribute to instructor who passed away last month
Katie May / Standard-Freeholder Sports - Tuesday, August 21, 2007 @ 08:00
Claude Bourdeau demanded the best. The martial arts instructor spent countless hours over the last 25 years teaching others to exercise the patience and dedication he practised every day. But when the city resident passed away suddenly last month at the age of 62, his Cornwall Judo and Martial Arts School died with him. The school, which offered many different self-defence classes such as judo and aiki-jutsu training for children and adults, has been closed since Bourdeau's fatal heart attack on July 31. Now, some of his students are organizing their own practices as they prepare to compete in a martial arts match in his honour.
When Kim Jurado found out her teacher of three years had died just a day after her last judo class with him, the 16-year-old says she decided she would compete in the grappling event for him. "It's a tribute to him," she says. "I wanted to make him proud because I know his students were his life." Along with her brother Victor, 20, who also took lessons at the school, Jurado began organizing independent practices at Lamoureux Park three weeks ago. A group of roughly five teens tightens up their judo techniques twice a week, getting ready for the Ottawa competition on Sept. 15. Marie Greffe, Bourdeau's girlfriend and assistant instructor, often stops by the park to check on their progress. She says it's only fitting that a "great man" such as Bourdeau would have such dedicated students. "He demanded the best because he gave the best and his students were grateful for that," she says. Todd Ivany, another of Bourdeau's former students, agrees. He says the instructor impacted his students' lives in so many ways. "He was the type of guy if you met him for 10 minutes, you knew him for 10 years," the 43-year-old aiki-jutsu student says. Ivany first met Bourdeau eight years ago and took lessons from him for four years until his death. He says he's never known another coach who could inspire his athletes like Bourdeau did. The students initiative to compete in a tribute to him is just a reflection of his inspiration, Ivany adds. "They're going to a park and practising on the grass," he emphasizes. "That's a dedication that everybody saw that Claude had, and that rubbed off."
When Kim Jurado found out her teacher of three years had died just a day after her last judo class with him, the 16-year-old says she decided she would compete in the grappling event for him. "It's a tribute to him," she says. "I wanted to make him proud because I know his students were his life." Along with her brother Victor, 20, who also took lessons at the school, Jurado began organizing independent practices at Lamoureux Park three weeks ago. A group of roughly five teens tightens up their judo techniques twice a week, getting ready for the Ottawa competition on Sept. 15. Marie Greffe, Bourdeau's girlfriend and assistant instructor, often stops by the park to check on their progress. She says it's only fitting that a "great man" such as Bourdeau would have such dedicated students. "He demanded the best because he gave the best and his students were grateful for that," she says. Todd Ivany, another of Bourdeau's former students, agrees. He says the instructor impacted his students' lives in so many ways. "He was the type of guy if you met him for 10 minutes, you knew him for 10 years," the 43-year-old aiki-jutsu student says. Ivany first met Bourdeau eight years ago and took lessons from him for four years until his death. He says he's never known another coach who could inspire his athletes like Bourdeau did. The students initiative to compete in a tribute to him is just a reflection of his inspiration, Ivany adds. "They're going to a park and practising on the grass," he emphasizes. "That's a dedication that everybody saw that Claude had, and that rubbed off."
FONTE: Standard Freeholder - Cornwall, Ontario, Canada
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