News Release

FREDERICTON (GNB) – Éric Larocque will be the executive director of the organizing committee for the 2021 Games of La Francophonie, which will be held in New Brunswick.

He will help the provincial government, the host cities of Dieppe and Moncton, and the various partners to set up the organizing committee to begin the work on hosting the event. His role will also be to maximize the benefits and media visibility for the province.

“I am pleased to tackle this new challenge,” said Larocque. “We will organize games that the youth of our province will never forget and that will fire the imagination of the entire French-speaking world.”

Originally from Bathurst, Larocque has experience in the non-profit sector and in the field of sports.

He was the president of the Fédération des jeunes francophones du Nouveau-Brunswick, executive director of the Fédération des étudiants et étudiantes du Centre universitaire de Moncton, executive director of the Société nationale de l’Acadie, and until recently, director of the 2019 World Acadian Congress.

He was New Brunswick’s assistant chef de mission during several Canadian Francophone Games and a member of the provincial delegation during the 2013 Games of La Francophonie in Nice. He was also one of the people responsible for obtaining the Canadian Francophone Games, which will be held in Moncton and Dieppe in 2017, and a member of the bid committee for the 2021 Games.

Larocque, who has a master's degree in public administration from the Université de Moncton, will take on his new duties on May 16.

The 2021 Games should bring in $25 million in economic spinoffs for the province. This sporting and cultural event is held every four years and is open to all New Brunswickers – francophones, anglophones and members of First Nations – aged 18 to 35.