By Normand Gosselin

When you say title sponsor, you mean major funder. Yes, Glencore is the main private sponsor of the Tour, for a second year of a three-year agreement. Glencore’s Director of Government Relations and Communications for Quebec, Alexis Ségal, clearly mentioned the company’s satisfaction with its contribution to the Tour during the City of Val-d’Or’s welcome cocktail on Monday, July 15.

In a private interview, Alexis Ségal elaborated on this statement, talking about the high level of professionalism of the Abitibian organization and the sense of pride that this sponsorship generates among the thousand Glencore employees in the region. The company does go to great lengths to ensure that its employees are proud of it. And, yes, the Tour ensures that everything is done according to the rules of the art, offering a show worthy of its category of international event and especially by guaranteeing the unfailing safety and a very high competition to the riders. These employees are generally proud of the Tour de l’Abitibi and its international dimension; especially that their employer is also strongly involved.

Glencore operates mining deposits in 35 countries, so partners with international events; remains to ensure the quality of the organization. At this level, Alexis Ségal is full of praise for the Tour de l’Abitibi. To the extent that he has hinted in a thinly veiled way that the odds of renewing the sponsorship agreement at the end of the current contract that includes 2025 are high.

In his view, the influence of these cycling races on the practice of sport among the region’s youth is important. One only has to look around to see that these competitions provoke the desire to do more than just be a spectator but rather to be PARTICIPANT in the race.

Glencore likes to support the Tour de l’Abitibi and other sporting, cultural, musical and festival events but does not intervene in the organization or programming but… is adamant that the Tour may present a women’s competition. The Tour is working seriously at this project.

To illustrate Glencore’s efforts to be present to women, Montreal’s Alexis Ségal talks about his desire to see them operating heavy machinery such as excavators, tractors, heavy trucks, etc. As he says so well, “Today it is no longer necessary to be 6 feet 2 inches tall and weigh 260 pounds to handle this equipment. We want to see more and more of them in these well paid jobs in our organization.” He even recalls that a native Quebecer, engineer Aline Côté, is the global technology manager at Glencore, she who previously worked in Matagami.

Glencore’s satisfaction with the Tour as well as the Tour’s satisfaction with Glencore’s respectful attitude make this partnership a win-win project.