Tiger Woods will win another major tournament. When the most electrifying golfer of his generation wins his 16th major and also passes Sam Snead for career victories with 83, you can come and reread this paragraph. It will be tough for Woods, 47, to win at the Masters Tournament because the court is difficult to walk on. If he wins, it will undoubtedly be at the British Open, played at Royal Troon, because precision is necessary to win there and Woods has lost none of his vision. He could also be dangerous at Valhalla Golf Club, where he won the 2000 PGA Championship, if he participates. Woods took part in three tournaments in 2023 and twice he resisted the cut by avoiding playing in the positive. He is still able to compete with other players for the power of his tee shots. He just needs to continue working on his putting to put all the chances on his side. But if there is one who can win another major tournament, a few inches shy of fifty, five years after his last major title and especially after having come close to death and amputation, it’s him.

The Canadian will acquire an impact player. A real one, despite all the respect I have for Alex Newhook. For example William Nylander, who could become a free agent in the summer of 2024, or someone else through a trade. On offense, the organization has no sure bet in its system to become a member of the top 6, at least in the near future. And even in defense… yes, the young people are gaining experience, but perhaps we would like to offer ourselves an improved version of the few veterans currently in place? After three years of rebuilding, I expect management to tighten the screws a bit.

I’m asked to be bold, so that’s what I will be. In 2024, CF Montreal will confirm… that its new head coach will stay in office for more than one season. I’ll give you time to go get yourself a glass of cold water to digest this burning cookie-cutter prediction. Okay, shall we continue? The club will eventually appoint its 10th coach since entering MLS in 2012. After Wilmer Cabrera, Thierry Henry, Wilfried Nancy and Hernán Losada in quick succession, the CFM now really needs stability at the helm of its boat. Which in no way guarantees that he will get it.

Tadej Pogačar will win the Giro and the Tour de France. Why is this a bold prediction? Because the double has not been achieved since the late Marco Pantani in 1998. The Italian topography and the weather in May make the Giro the most unpredictable grand tour. If he makes it to the end of his first attempt at the Tour of Italy, on May 29, in Rome, the Slovenian from UAE Team Emirates will have 33 days to recharge his batteries before the start of the Tour de France, in Florence, June 29. This period is slightly longer than in previous years. The Giro will have 10,000 meters less elevation gain than the 2023 edition, the equivalent of almost two and a half high mountain stages. The climb is also less concentrated in the third week. If he wins the pink jersey as predicted in this column, an even greater challenge will be to conclude the Tour de France wearing yellow in Nice. In addition to Jonas Vingegaard (Visma | Lease a Bike, will take some getting used to), double title holder, Pogačar will face particularly tough opposition with the announced participation, among others, of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step, winner of the last Giro) and Primož Roglič, new representative of the ambitious BORA-hansgrohe. Big program for Tadej Pogačar, who is also targeting the Grands Prix of Quebec and Montreal and the World Championships in Zurich. Now 25, “he’s capable,” as my father used to say.

Powered by the defensive brilliance of Quebecer Luguentz Dort, the Canadian men’s basketball team will cause a shock at the Paris Games by reaching the final. This will be the first Olympic medal for Canadian basketball players in 88 years.

There will be a soccer match without simulation. The assignment was very clear, and in it was the word “bold.” So that’s it. Not being a regular consumer of outdoor soccer (I much prefer the purer, indoor version on a mat with scores of 33 to 29, as it should be played at all times), I cannot claim to have the truth, but I’m pretty sure that in the entire history of this “sport” there has never been a single match that didn’t include at least one theatrical death. But this January, we are in 2024, and in the face of such certainty, and also because times are changing, I am convinced that there will be at least one game, in a league somewhere, where no one will feel the need to recreate the scene of Othello’s death. It’s bold, I agree, but the year 2024 will be the year of all possibilities, so that’s it.

As a sports director, nothing gives me more professional pleasure than the popularity of the sport, whatever it may be. After the Stanley Cup final and the two Olympic Games together, there was a certain slump. The end of 2023, however, gave me hope that the Alouettes will regain their place in the sporting landscape. The truth being that the public was no longer there for the media coverage of the team and that therefore, inevitably, this coverage was declining. However, there is a need in Montreal for clubs other than the Canadian to take their place, which is not always easy. It is also important that readers engage with this content as much as possible. The Alouettes have laid the foundations for this reconquest of the public’s love, and everyone, sports fans and journalists alike, could only rejoice in a year 2024 filled with success for the Sparrows.