MONTREAL, March 15, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Professional football player and doctor Laurent Duvernay-Tardif is visiting high schools across the country to engage students as part of Sodexo’s Powering Performance program. The 2020 Super Bowl champion will host on-campus and virtual visits that focus on healthy eating, how food improves cognitive function, concentration, and energy, and the importance of physical activity.
“As a professional athlete and medical school graduate, Laurent brings an extraordinary perspective to nutrition and physical activity,” said Martin Lapointe, Vice President Operations, Education Programs, Sodexo Canada. “As we look at our dedication to Quality of Life and the Powering Performance program, I can think of no better representative for our work on campuses than a doctor who is a professional football star.”
Powering Performance is an innovative health and wellness program for Grades K-12 that pairs access to fresh, diverse, exciting meals with easy-to-understand nutrition education. It draws on young people’s increasing curiosity about food and its impact on their body and health. Students learn how different foods can sustain them both physically and mentally, empowering them to make smart, healthy decisions both now and in the future.
“I’m excited to meet students from across Canada and speak about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle,” said Laurent Duvernay-Tardif. “I look forward to sharing my personal experiences with them and positively influencing their lives.”
Duvernay-Tardif will visit the following schools to meet, teach and motivate students:
- March 15 (virtual) – Athol Murray College of Notre Dame-Café, Wilcox, SK
- March 30 (in-person) – West Point Grey Academy, Vancouver, BC
- April 27 (in-person) – Selwyn House School, Westmount, QC
- May 4 or 11 (virtual) – St. George’s School, Vancouver, BC
About Laurent Duvernay-Tardif
Duvernay-Tardif received the Sports Illustrated’s 2020 Sportsperson of the Year award, the 2021 ESPY Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award as well as being named the co-winner of the 2020 Lou Marsh Trophy as Canada’s Athlete of the Year,. He has also been Quebec’s spokesperson for Hooked on School Days since 2019.
A native of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, he grew up in the Montreal area. When asked to choose between football and medicine, he refused to compromise and pursued both of his dreams. In 2018, he graduated from McGill University with a doctorate in medicine while also playing professional football for the Kansas City Chiefs. As he tells young people he meets during the many talks he gives at schools: It’s all about balance. Don’t give up on your passions!
Believing that both physical activity and creativity are fundamental factors in children’s development and educational success, he and his long-time partner, Florence-Agathe Dubé-Moreau, established the Laurent Duvernay-Tardif Foundation. With Move, Motivate, Inspire as its motto, it promotes balancing sports, arts and studies.
About Sodexo
Sodexo delivers a wide range of customized solutions designed to optimize work and living environments. It has been providing food and facilities management services in Canada for over 40 years, with a focus on enhancing safety, work processes and well-being. A market leader in Canada, Sodexo has been recognized as a top employer for the past seven consecutive years. It is proud to have created the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation, an independent charitable organization that has raised over $3 million to fight hunger and donated more than one million meals to at-risk youth across Canada since 2007. Sodexo is included in the CAC Next 20, CAC 40 ESG, FTSE 4 Good and DJSI indices.
Follow us: ca.Sodexo.com
https://twitter.com/sodexocanada
https://www.facebook.com/sodexo.ca/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/sodexo/
https://www.instagram.com/sodexocanada/
Key Figures
| • 10 000 employees | • Recipient of Canada’s Diversity & Inclusion Employer Awards 2021 |
| • Recipient of Canada’s Greenest Employer Awards 2021 | • 1 million consumers served daily |
Contact
Media
Drew Nannis
Drew.Nannis@sodexo.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/54afb455-a2c3-46e2-985e-b3320662353d
