The water polo world mourns the loss of Quebecer Claude Lavoie, a great athlete best known for fighting for women’s equality in the discipline.

Just last week, Mr. Lavoie was officially inducted into the Canadian Water Polo Hall of Fame at an event in Montreal. Last May he received the Hommage Jacques Beauchamp Prize at the 50th…^e Gala Sports Quebec.

• Also read: Mikaël Kingsbury finds his “Mauritius”

“I had the pleasure of chatting with Claude in 2022 following his induction into the Canadian Aquatics Hall of Fame,” Kathleen Dawson, President of Water Polo Canada, said in a statement Sunday. That call gave me the opportunity to thank him for his fight for women’s equality in water polo, his work that has helped women compete in the sport around the world today.”

“Last week at the induction ceremony of the Canadian Water Polo Hall of Fame in Montreal, his positive impact on the sport and the athletes he coaches was clearly visible and we will miss him dearly,” added M.^Me dawson

Until the Olympic Games in Sydney

Originally from the Quebec area, Claude Lavoie died after a battle with cancer for more than two years.

“Claude Lavoie was one of the most important figures in Canadian water polo history and has filled many roles over the course of his five-decade career,” summarized Water Polo Canada.

As a founding member of Les Hydras de Sainte-Foy, he coached the first women’s national team to play internationally at the 1978 World Cup in Berlin. Mr. Lavoie also contributed to the development of the sport leading up to women’s water polo reaching its pinnacle at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. His career also includes the presidency of Water Polo Canada.