{"id":152815,"date":"2025-12-17T12:37:28","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T17:37:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/runningmagazine.ca\/?p=152815"},"modified":"2025-12-17T13:17:34","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T18:17:34","slug":"canadian-steeplechaser-turns-olympic-journey-into-documentary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/runningmagazine.ca\/the-scene\/canadian-steeplechaser-turns-olympic-journey-into-documentary\/","title":{"rendered":"Canadian steeplechaser turns Olympic journey into documentary"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ten months before the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Canadian steeplechaser Jean-Simon Desgagn\u00e9s<\/strong><\/a> was coming off the best season of his career. He finished eighth at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, less than four seconds shy of a medal. Despite the breakthrough, Desgagn\u00e9s knew he still faced an uphill battle to contend on the sport\u2019s biggest stage, the Olympic Games, while also balancing medical school at Universit\u00e9 Laval.<\/p>\n

That fall, Desgagn\u00e9s approached his close friend and film producer Marc-Alexandre Dulude<\/strong> of Galerie Studios with an idea to document his journey to Paris. “I knew the next year would be something special,” Desgagn\u00e9s says. “Let\u2019s film it and see what we can put together.”<\/p>\n

From that point on, Desgagn\u00e9s\u2019 daily routine became a balancing act. His days often began at 6 a.m. with a run, followed by up to eight hours of studying medicine, before returning to the track for an evening training session.<\/p>\n

\"Jean-Simon
Jean-Simon Desgagn\u00e9s in the heats of the men’s 3,000m steeplechase at Paris 2024. Photo: Nick Iwanyshyn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dulude followed the steeplechaser through key moments of the season, capturing workouts, the Canadian Track and Field Olympic Trials, and the 2024 Paris Diamond League, where Desgagn\u00e9s ran 8:13.11\u2014the fifth-fastest steeplechase time in Canadian history. The film also features interviews with notable figures in Quebec distance running, including Canadian 10K record holder Charles Philibert-Thiboutot<\/strong> <\/a>and coach F\u00e9lix-Antoine Lapointe<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Last Friday at Cin\u00e9ma Le Clap in Quebec City, roughly 250 people attended the premiere as Dulude and Desgagn\u00e9s unveiled the project two years in the making, Comme Pas Deux<\/em>. The behind-the-scenes documentary was released on YouTube on Dec. 15. It is just over 30 minutes in length and in French. <\/p>\n