Roland Désourdy (CAN), known by his many Canadian friends as Monsieur Roland, passed away at the end of last month at the age of 93. A well-known businessman in Québec, he founded Ville de Bromont, which he planned as a city for the 21st century and which has developed into the city of Bromont that we know today.
Mr Désourdy, who was first and foremost a horseman, was instrumental in the organisation of the equestrian events of the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games. The equestrian stadium built at Bromont, where all the competitions were held except for team Jumping, was considered to be near perfect. There was seating for 15,000 spectators on the side of the valley and on the other side were the facilities for the organisation, the media and VIPs. The steeplechase for the three-day event was nearby, as was the cross-country course.
The 1976 Olympic equestrian competitions lifted the level of equestrianism in Canada, leading to the great success the country has enjoyed since Michel Vaillancourt’s individual silver medal in those very Olympic Games and on to Eric Lamaze’s individual gold in Hong Kong in 2008.