Atlético Ottawa launches its first school-based soccer program at Paul-Desmarais

By Adam Beauchemin

There was some nervousness on the part of organizers that students’ minds might be leaning elsewhere on the second-last day of school and that keeping their big announcement a secret might backfire.

There were puzzled expressions from Paul-Desmarais high school’s soccer players when the cheer team finished their performance in the dome holding “Atlético” signs instead of “Patriotes”.

But when pro players from the local Canadian Premier League club emerged from behind the stage and they were suddenly introduced to their new coach from Atlético Ottawa, it made the students grateful to have come to class as summer loomed.

“The wonder in our students’ eyes and their enthusiasm to get involved in this project confirm to us the sense of belonging they have in our school. That’s a big source of pride,” principal Mathieu Gagné said in French during his remarks at a June 17 announcement of a partnership between École secondaire catholique Paul-Desmarais and Atlético Ottawa.

The collaboration will kickoff when students return to school in the fall, providing players in the sport-études (sports-study) soccer program with “access to the expertise of Atlético Ottawa coaches, individualized coaching, high-level programming, immersive activities with the players, and concrete visibility within professional networks,” a media release outlined.

Atlético Ottawa’s business development director Max Rosen noted that the club was particularly keen to establish a partnership with a French-language school.

“I love the fact that we can be a part of the French community in Ottawa. We noticed that something the professional teams (in Ottawa) lack is a connection with the French community,” Rosen told the Ottawa Sports Pages. “It’s the first time that we have a partnership with the ‘Powered-by Atlético’ program with a school, where we’re actively doing programs inside of a school. Our staff, our coach, our players, will be part of the sessions being held at Paul-Desmarais.”

Bila Dicko-Raynauld was introduced as the new coach for Atlético Ottawa at Paul-Desmarais, where he’ll join several teacher-coaches who have led Patriotes teams to back-to-back OFSAA provincial high school championships appearances. The program is not particularly focused on bolstering the school’s teams however, it’s more geared to helping players reach their full potential with top-notch daytime training integrated into their school day.

“This project will provide a positive, inclusive and competitive environment where young people will be well-looked after both on and off the pitch. It’s a great opportunity to foster the development of passionate talent,” said Dicko-Raynauld, who won the 2025 Futsal Canadian Championship with Atlético Gatineau and previously played university soccer with the Laval Rouge et Or from 2013 to 2019.

Atlético Ottawa goalkeeper Tristan Crampton, who won a Golden Glove Award as Ligue1 Québec’s best goalkeeper and helped OSU Atlético’s men’s reserve team to a 2024 title, credited the sport-études program he experienced at Nicolas-Gatineau high school for playing a crucial role in his development on the road to becoming a pro player.

“I know how life-changing this environment can be for a young athlete,” said Crampton, who recently graduated from the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières with a business degree. “It helped me a lot to balance school and sports. You wake up every morning and you want to go to school because you know that in the afternoon, you get to play soccer with your friends and actually be competitive. I think this program is going to be awesome, allowing kids to do that as well.”

Crampton is thoroughly enjoying his rookie season at Atlético, learning from starter Nathan Ingham, having soccer as his job and being part of a first-place team that has lost just once in 13 games.

“We’re off to a good start and we hope it keeps going,” highlighted the 22-year-old. “We have a great coaching staff and we work hard every day in training. It starts from there. You’re going to play like you train. We show up every day and we work very hard. We prepare all week. Our whole lives are based around soccer. Your eating habits, your sleeping habits, your lifestyle – you’ve got to perform in that regard.

“The recipe is no secret. It’s hard work and dedication.”

– with files from Dan Plouffe

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