Nothing horrifies me more than an analyst repeating to you what you just saw on screen. I expect an analyst to bring added value to what has just unfolded before our eyes. Let him go back to the source to explain to us the birth of the action. That it brings me new information about athletes, even if it is a nice slice of life that is not linked to sport. My ears are also sensitive to the massacre of French, to the too many anglicisms that abound in our environment, such as the expressions “perform”, “present”, “take” a throw. Marc Denis was a breath of fresh air when he arrived on RDS about ten years ago. Impeccable tone of voice, accuracy of analysis, French to perfection, behind his words we sense all the preparation work. We almost take it for granted because it is so much a part of our daily landscape and we have nothing to reproach it for. This former National Hockey League goaltender not only offers quality analysis, but I don’t remember a single bad night from him. When the time comes to place it in a broader perspective, since the beginning of the presentation of Canadian matches on the radio and on the small screen over the decades, we will have to ask ourselves if there has been a better one.
By way of introduction, don’t get me wrong, Quebec is full of talented commentators and analysts. The first obviously being Pierre Houde, whose voice and quality of analysis have rocked our evenings for so long. But I choose Pierre Vercheval for a very specific reason: he fights against the best in the world in terms of sports TV broadcasting. Pierre Vercheval, but also the entire team that accompanies him, from Matthieu Proulx to David Arsenault via Bruno Heppell, Danny Desriveaux and Didier Orméjuste, must convince viewers not to watch the NFL in English. This is an exceptionally ambitious mandate. Can you imagine the level of excellence needed to oppose NFL broadcasting? To convince the Quebec public to tune into football in French when the English option is two clicks away on the remote control? It’s mission accomplished, week after week, and it’s a credit to probably one of the best broadcast teams in Quebec sporting history.
I’ve always had a weakness for all-around commentators/analysts/journalists. At the top of the list is Richard Garneau. For me, he is the greatest, all categories combined, in the rich history of the small Quebec sports screen. I watched Mr. Garneau at the very end of his career, but all the same, his versatility, his class, his level of language, his concern for the right word, his capacity for wonder and his deep love for athletes impressed me. always inspired. It is also partly thanks to him that I developed a passion for the Olympics. Unfortunately, Mr. Garneau left us in 2013. And when I look at the current media portrait, his worthy successor is at TVA Sports. In my opinion, Denis Casavant is second to none. Even if he is not highlighted enough for my taste, Mr. Casavant can do everything. From hockey to baseball to football. I love his work, the accuracy of his descriptions, his tone and his unwavering objectivity. Denis Casavant is currently the best descriptor in Quebec.
I have the greatest respect for generalists like Denis Casavant, Pierre Houde and Frédéric Lord, who are capable of describing up to three different sports during the same season. It requires a lot of preparation work. Talent, too. Give Denis a day, and I’m convinced he can make the entire Olympic taekwondo tournament. Otherwise, I love Alain Usereau and Marc Griffin in baseball at RDS. They meet the expectations of the ball nerd that I am. Most satisfying moment? When Marc bemoans a manager’s conservatism – “why does he hold his runner at first base? » –, and that the following double play proves him right.
Peter Drury. The Englishman is a true poet in front of his microphone, his eyes fixed on the biggest soccer matches in the world. I lack the fingers – and above all, the space – to list his best goal descriptions. There was South Africa, at the 2010 World Cup: “A goal from South Africa! A goal for all of Africa! Or more recently, to Argentina’s victory in Qatar in 2022: “Messi shook hands with heaven…” But the most memorable moment of Drury’s illustrious career so far is when he described the goal of Greek Kostas Manolas for AS Roma, at the end of an irresistible comeback against FC Barcelona, in the 2018 Champions League. “Roma have risen from their ruins! Manolas, the Greek God in Rome! The unthinkable unfolds before our eyes! This was not meant to happen. This could not happen. This is happening. […] It’s a Greek from Mount Olympus who has come to the seven hills of Rome and pulled off a miracle! » Translation: “Rome is reborn from its ruins! Manolas, the Greek god in Rome! The impossible is happening before our eyes. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. It couldn’t be like this. It goes like this. He is a Greek, from Mount Olympus, who comes down from the seven hills of Rome to perform a miracle! » And this, without having thought about it beforehand. Genius. Every time I hear his voice superimposed on a match, I turn up the volume. Because with Peter Drury, a simple touch can give you chills.
During my (very) brief stint on the Expos beat, in the summer of 1999, I couldn’t wait to get into the locker room of the other team, any team. The reason ? I had heard between the branches that certain major baseball stars had taken to putting the locker room TVs on RDS in order to watch episodes of the Mini-Putt Challenge… and also to hear the frenzied descriptions of Serge Vleminckx. That gives you an idea. Mini-putting was never going to become as big as hockey or football, but in the mouth of the good Serge, the slightest two-foot putt became as important as a seventh game of the Stanley Cup finals. Over time, these episodes have become classics shared on YouTube, and the show’s best lines (“Have you seen his eyes? Maurice Richard!”) are now carefully preserved in our collective memory. Has there been a descriptor that has had such an impact on an entire province in such a short time? I do not believe.
