Mansfield-et-Pontefract

A man lifts a barbell over his head during a weightlifting competition.

Xavier Lusignan sets Canadian record at World Weightlifting Championships

December 19, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

Mansfield-et-Pontefract weightlifter Xavier Lusignan hoisted his way to a Canadian clean and jerk record last week while competing in Bahrain at his first World Weightlifting Championships as a senior athlete.

Lusignan, competing in the 102 kg weight class, lifted 161 kg (355 lbs) in the snatch and 202 kg (445 lbs) in the clean and jerk to finish in 14th place. Lusignan topped the previous Canadian clean and jerk record for his division, set back in 2021 by 2x Olympian Boady Santavy, by 4 kg.

The 21-year-old explained that he’s still working towards his physical peak, which he anticipates will be later in his 20s.

He said that the future of his senior career could be interesting, as his weight class has been discontinued, and he will now need to decide whether to compete at 98 kg or 110 kg. Having just made the jump from 96 kg to 102 kg this year, he said they would have to see which option put him in the best position to qualify for the Olympics.

A burnt out building with orange siding smoulders.

Construction Dany Ladouceur shop destroyed by fire

December 2, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

A shop belonging to Fort-Coulonge company Construction Dany Ladouceur went up in smoke early Saturday November 30, with the building and much of the equipment in it a total loss.

Owner Dany Ladouceur, himself a member of the Fort-Coulonge Fire Department, said that they got the call at around 2:30 a.m. Saturday and the building, located at 639 rue Baume, was fully involved when they arrived.

Capt. Michel Fortin of the Fort-Coulonge Fire Department, said that they as well as the Mansfield-et-Pontefract department responded with five trucks and roughly 30 firefighters, and they were on scene until about 10 a.m. ensuring no flare-ups occured. He said that the cause of the blaze was under investigation.

Ladouceur said that luckily his tool trailer was outside the shop, and hoped there would be minimal disruption to the jobs he and his three employees currently have on the go.

A young woman lifts a barbell at a weightlifting competition.

Naomie Lusignan finishes 10th at World Junior Weightlifting Championships

October 3, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

Teenage Pontiac weightlifter Naomie Lusignan recently returned from the World Junior Weightlifting Championship, which took place in León, Spain from September 19-27, finishing tenth in the 71 kg division.

She said she was proud of her performance in the snatch where she hoisted 95 kg (209 lbs), besting her personal record by three kilos. She was less happy with her clean and jerk, where she missed a lift of 115 kg (253.5 lbs) due to a slip and then was too fatigued to hit her final lift of 117 kg (258 lbs).

This was Lusignan’s second time competing in the event, and she said that she felt the competition in her division was stronger than last year, when she took sixth place.

A stop sign at an intersection with a tree in the background.

Ontario woman pleads guilty to impaired driving causing death of local man

September 19, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

On Tuesday September 17, Emily-Ann Rumleskie pleaded guilty to cannabis-impaired driving resulting in the death of Sylvain Bégin in September 2020.

The collision that claimed Bégin’s life took place on the evening of September 19, 2020, at the intersection of rue Poirier and Hwy. 148 in Mansfield-et-Pontefract. According to her plea statement, Rumleskie pulled onto the highway without yielding to Bégin’s right of way and his motorcycle collided with her vehicle.

Rumleskie, a resident of Barry’s Bay Ontario, was 22 years-old at the time of her arrest on December 16, 2020. Bégin was well-known in the area as a community volunteer, firefighter, and director general of the Municipalities of Rapides-des-Joachims and l’Île-du-Grand-Calumet.

The full plea statement can be found here.

A drone shot of the Municipality of Mansfield, a small village with few houses and businesses. The town is on the banks of a river. There is a red covered bridge crossing the river.

Municipality of Mansfield ordered to pay $108,360 to waste collection company

August 23, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

On August 13, the Quebec Court of Appeal upheld a previous judgement and ruled against the Municipality of Mansfield-et-Pontefract, ordering it to pay $108,360 to Location Martin-Lalonde Inc., a local contractor that bid on the town’s waste collection contract back in 2015.

The amount reflects damages for unrealized profits after another company was awarded the 5-year contract following a public tender process. This latest ruling upheld a January 2023 decision by a superior court judge, which ruled that Lalonde’s submission should have been deemed admissible, despite a “minor irregularity”, as the company that won the contract was found to have a non-compliant bid.

Both Mansfield Mayor Sandra Armstrong and Location Martin-Lalonde Inc. declined to comment on the record to CHIP 101.9.

The full decision by the Court of Appeal is available here.

A host of public officials cut a ribbon in front of a large tourism map.

New highway rest stop in Mansfield officially opened

May 6, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

A host of elected officials and bureaucrats gathered along Hwy. 148 in Mansfield on Friday morning for the official ribbon cutting of a new highway rest stop. The revamped property now features a self-cleaning bathroom, electric car charger, several picnic shelters and a map with tourism information for the entire Pontiac. It sits within view of the historic Felix-Gabriel-Marchand covered bridge and across the road from local museum Maison George Bryson.

Mansfield Mayor Sandra Armstrong explained that they decided to pursue grant funding for the project after receiving the “Village Relais” designation, making them a part of a network of designated rest stops in small municipalities across the province.

She said that they received funding from a variety of sources. She said that the municipality’s contribution was roughly $50,000, but partially in work done towards the completion of the project.