Over the last few months, a local tennis phenom has been making noise on the international stage with intentions of taking her talents to the next level. At the beginning of June, Luskville native Mélodie Collard, currently ranked 78th on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Junior Circuit, will be travelling to Paris with hopes of qualifying for this year’s Junior French Open Championship in France.
Also known as Roland-Garos, the tournament is one of four Grand Slams on the ITF’s calendar making it one of the most prestigious and exclusive tournaments for any player to participate in.
After seeing substantial success in tournaments in Costa Rica, Colombia and Ecuador earlier this year, including a victory against a top 15 player in the world, Collard has put herself in a position to compete in tournaments against the best players in the world.
Having never participated in a Grand Slam, only following them as a fan from a young age, Collard is excited about the opportunity to finally participate in one tennis’ great events.
With excellent results on the court in the last year, she’s very confident about her chances going into the tournament, expecting to perform well and perhaps walk away with some favourable results at the end of it.
“I definitely believe in my chances,” she said. “Going into the tournament I’m playing with the intention of winning. I know that that’s what I’ll be playing for.”
While the road ahead of her provides a whole lot of promise and plenty of reason for excitement, Collard knows that it’s been a long, arduous journey to get there.
Now healthy Collard is playing her best tennis ever. Following a string of injuries to her back and her shoulders last year in what was arguably the most difficult period of her career, she’s grateful to be in the position that she’s in considering how far she felt from it just a year ago.
“I definitely wouldn’t have believed it,” she said. “It would have been hard to believe because I had a lot of injuries in 2018 and I had trouble finishing matches at one point. So, to say that one year later I’d be playing at the level of Roland-Garos for sure I wouldn’t believe it. But, I’m very pleased with how things evolved over the past year and how quick things can change even if you can’t really see it.”
Out of commission for four months, the time away from the game allowed her to reflect on her game and work on getting stronger physically to prevent herself from getting hurt again perhaps more severely than before.
Collard credits her brother Sébastien as one of her biggest motivations to consistently work hard and get better at the sport she loves.
Committed to Southern Alabama University with an athletic scholarship, Sébastien is quite an accomplished player himself who’s always been a presence in Collard’s career, constantly pushing her to become the best player that she can be.
“He’s always motivated me,” she said. “He’s better than me at tennis. So, my goal is always to beat him. I know he’s happy when I get good results, so it’s fun and we have a really great relationship.”
“He’s always pushed me to become a better a player because he was always better than me,” she added. “Physically he’s stronger so for sure he’s always been better. But it always makes up for good competition.”
But she knows that the game itself is all the motivation she needs.
Always striving to grow and push her limits, Collard is grateful for what she’s made of her life by playing the game she’s passionate about.
“I often ask myself what my life would be like without tennis,” she said. “It would probably be really boring and all. So, I’m always motivated to be on the court. I find it really fun to surpass myself and that’s what pushes me to be better.”
Watching her brother play the game at a high level from a young age, Collard followed his footsteps.
She started playing tennis when she was six years old, hitting balls on the court at her family’s property in Luskville.
As a kid who participated and thrived in most sports growing up, it didn’t take long for her to pick up tennis and for her talents to get noticed by surrounding coaches and players.
According to her long-time coach Mathieu Toupin, Collard’s potential was apparent from the first time he watched her play as a six year old back when he was coaching her brother at the Sporthèque athletic facility in Hull, Que.
Even as a little girl, her high level of intensity and desire to win separated her from most kids her age.
Having worked together for nine years, Toupin and Collard’s relationship is one of understanding and respect where both know what to expect from one another.
For Collard, one of her coach’s best qualities is his ability to put himself into her shoes when she makes a mistake on the court and she largely credits him for her wide shot making repertoire.
“When I miss a shot, instead of saying ‘You should’ve done this.’ He always asks ‘Why did you make that mistake?’” she said. “So, that when I find myself alone in a game situation, I remember what my error was so I can fix it myself because he’s not allowed to communicate with me.”
On the court, Collard plays a dynamic style of play that is soothing to the eye. With a wide variety of shot-making ability, creativity and tremendous athleticism, Collard plays the game in a unique way that differentiates from the majority of her peers.
With dedicated work ethic and a passion for the game that is second to none, Collard has evolved into a player that offers a variety of shots that even some of the world’s best pro players can’t dream of doing.
When it comes to her ability, Collard is a competitor through and through who performs better in matches than in training – a rarity, even for elite players, and a quality only held by true champions, according to Toupin.
With nearly 30 years of experience coaching some of the top tennis players from the Outaouais, Toupin has seen plenty of talent over time and knows greatness when he sees it.
In the case of Collard, Toupin has lofty expectations for the 15-year-old sensation stating that she has a chance to become a special player who could one day shine amongst the world’s very best.
“I’m not shy about saying this, she’s not in the top 50, she’s not in the top 25, but I can tell you that among the entire junior circuit she’ll end up as one of the most spectacular players,” he said.
Toupin believes Collard is a special blend of player and personality that doesn’t come around often especially in this part of the world.
“I’ve seen a lot of good players,” he said. “But I can tell you that as far as players with Mélodie’s potential in the Outaouais over the years, I’ve seen one. People like that, you don’t meet a lot of them in your life. I’m convinced that we don’t get to meet a lot of people like Mélodie in our lives.”
Her unique focus was apparent to him when she was preparing for her first tests with Tennis Canada as a youngster.
Toupin recalls Collard playing with such intensity that her nose started bleeding on the court.
“I always saw that her body reacted to how she acted,” said Toupin. “At the start you saw right away her intensity. But you told yourself that it would maybe even be negative if she wasn’t able to manage.”
While her emotions often contributed to her demise on the court in the past, Collard has evolved into an even-keeled player who uses her intensity to her advantage – an edge that she has over a lot of her competitors, Toupin said.
After suffering her share of injuries, Collard knew that she had to make a change in how she approached the game to prevent them from getting worse or happening again.
“I’ve become emotionally very stable,” she said. “I’m very positive and that really helps me stay calm in my head and ma ke decisions that make sense on the court.”
Putting in around 25 hours of training every week to be at the top of her game, one of the most challenging elements of her regimen is managing time and dedicating enough hours to schoolwork.
With a fully loaded travel schedule, especially in the last year, Collard is enrolled in an online program at l’Académie des Estacades in Trois-Rivières to continue her studies while playing tennis at the highest level.
With nothing promised in athletics considering the unpredictability of injuries, Collard knows about the importance of being successful on and off the court.
“It’s really important,” she said. “Even if my goal is to have a career in tennis, I know that I never know what could happen with injuries and all that. So, for sure school is very important.”
“The hardest part is really concentrating and being very focused on school when I’m in tournaments,” she added. “Because sometimes I’m very tired on certain nights and I don’t feel like doing homework and I’d rather just watch Netflix or something like that. But you have to work. That’s that hardest thing – finding the time and working when you have the time.”
And with already plenty of success on her resume, Collard isn’t planning on stopping any time soon.
Toupin believes the next two to three years of her career will play a significant factor in her development and ultimately deciding the fate of her future as a tennis player.
“I think she’s definitely capable of becoming a professional player,” said Toupin. “What’s going to tell us if she’ll be able to reach the potential of a Félix Auger-Aliassime right now, Dennis Shapovalov, Bianca Andrescu is the next two to three years. Mélodie is very conscious that at 15-16-and-17-years-old there’s still a whole lot of things she can improve on. From 15-to-18-years-old remains a very important period for her.”
As one of the brightest up and coming talents from the region, Collard is thrilled to be in a position to inspire young players to participate in the sport, helping grow the game locally and hopefully aspire to play it at the highest level.
For Collard, it’s important to show that tennis players from Gatineau can make it just as big as anyone else.
“We don’t have a lot of big-name players in Gatineau,” she said. “There aren’t a lot of courts and all. It’d be fun to show that even with these courts, these places and just being from Gatineau, with coaches from Gatineau, I think it’s fun to show where we can go.”
Traveling the world and sometimes even getting paid to play the game she loves; Collard feels fortunate for the countless relationships and memories the sport has brought her over the course of her career and she’s excited for what the future holds.
“It’s a really great opportunity,” she said. “I get to travel and to see countries that I likely wouldn’t get to see if I wouldn’t be playing tennis. And I’ve met a lot of people and made friendships with people all across the world. For sure, it makes for great relationships and awesome places to go travel.”ver the last few months, a local tennis phenom has been making noise on the international stage with intentions of taking her talents to the next level.At the beginning of June, Luskville native Mélodie Collard, currently ranked 78th on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Junior Circuit, will be travelling to Paris with hopes of qualifying for this year’s Junior French Open Championship in France.
Also known as Roland-Garos, the tournament is one of four Grand Slams on the ITF’s calendar making it one of the most prestigious and exclusive tournaments for any player to participate in.
After seeing substantial success in tournaments in Costa Rica, Colombia and Ecuador earlier this year, including a victory against a top 15 player in the world, Collard has put herself in a position to compete in tournaments against the best players in the world.
Having never participated in a Grand Slam, only following them as a fan from a young age, Collard is excited about the opportunity to finally participate in one tennis’ great events.
With excellent results on the court in the last year, she’s very confident about her chances going into the tournament, expecting to perform well and perhaps walk away with some favourable results at the end of it.
“I definitely believe in my chances,” she said. “Going into the tournament I’m playing with the intention of winning. I know that that’s what I’ll be playing for.”
While the road ahead of her provides a whole lot of promise and plenty of reason for excitement, Collard knows that it’s been a long, arduous journey to get there.
Now healthy Collard is playing her best tennis ever. Following a string of injuries to her back and her shoulders last year in what was arguably the most difficult period of her career, she’s grateful to be in the position that she’s in considering how far she felt from it just a year ago.
“I definitely wouldn’t have believed it,” she said. “It would have been hard to believe because I had a lot of injuries in 2018 and I had trouble finishing matches at one point. So, to say that one year later I’d be playing at the level of Roland-Garos for sure I wouldn’t believe it. But, I’m very pleased with how things evolved over the past year and how quick things can change even if you can’t really see it.”
Out of commission for four months, the time away from the game allowed her to reflect on her game and work on getting stronger physically to prevent herself from getting hurt again perhaps more severely than before.
Collard credits her brother Sébastien as one of her biggest motivations to consistently work hard and get better at the sport she loves.
Committed to Southern Alabama University with an athletic scholarship, Sébastien is quite an accomplished player himself who’s always been a presence in Collard’s career, constantly pushing her to become the best player that she can be.
“He’s always motivated me,” she said. “He’s better than me at tennis. So, my goal is always to beat him. I know he’s happy when I get good results, so it’s fun and we have a really great relationship.”
“He’s always pushed me to become a better a player because he was always better than me,” she added. “Physically he’s stronger so for sure he’s always been better. But it always makes up for good competition.”
But she knows that the game itself is all the motivation she needs.
Always striving to grow and push her limits, Collard is grateful for what she’s made of her life by playing the game she’s passionate about.
“I often ask myself what my life would be like without tennis,” she said. “It would probably be really boring and all. So, I’m always motivated to be on the court. I find it really fun to surpass myself and that’s what pushes me to be better.”
Watching her brother play the game at a high level from a young age, Collard followed his footsteps.
She started playing tennis when she was six years old, hitting balls on the court at her family’s property in Luskville.
As a kid who participated and thrived in most sports growing up, it didn’t take long for her to pick up tennis and for her talents to get noticed by surrounding coaches and players.
According to her long-time coach Mathieu Toupin, Collard’s potential was apparent from the first time he watched her play as a six year old back when he was coaching her brother at the Sporthèque athletic facility in Hull, Que.
Even as a little girl, her high level of intensity and desire to win separated her from most kids her age.
Having worked together for nine years, Toupin and Collard’s relationship is one of understanding and respect where both know what to expect from one another.
For Collard, one of her coach’s best qualities is his ability to put h imself into her shoes when she makes a mistake on the court and she largely credits him for her wide shot making repertoire.
“When I miss a shot, instead of saying ‘You should’ve done this.’ He always asks ‘Why did you make that mistake?’” she said. “So, that when I find myself alone in a game situation, I remember what my error was so I can fix it myself because he’s not allowed to communicate with me.”
On the court, Collard plays a dynamic style of play that is soothing to the eye. With a wide variety of shot-making ability, creativity and tremendous athleticism, Collard plays the game in a unique way that differentiates from the majority of her peers.
With dedicated work ethic and a passion for the game that is second to none, Collard has evolved into a player that offers a variety of shots that even some of the world’s best pro players can’t dream of doing.
When it comes to her ability, Collard is a competitor through and through who performs better in matches than in training – a rarity, even for elite players, and a quality only held by true champions, according to Toupin.
With nearly 30 years of experience coaching some of the top tennis players from the Outaouais, Toupin has seen plenty of talent over time and knows greatness when he sees it.
In the case of Collard, Toupin has lofty expectations for the 15-year-old sensation stating that she has a chance to become a special player who could one day shine amongst the world’s very best.
“I’m not shy about saying this, she’s not in the top 50, she’s not in the top 25, but I can tell you that among the entire junior circuit she’ll end up as one of the most spectacular players,” he said.
Toupin believes Collard is a special blend of player and personality that doesn’t come around often especially in this part of the world.
“I’ve seen a lot of good players,” he said. “But I can tell you that as far as players with Mélodie’s potential in the Outaouais over the years, I’ve seen one. People like that, you don’t meet a lot of them in your life. I’m convinced that we don’t get to meet a lot of people like Mélodie in our lives.”
Her unique focus was apparent to him when she was preparing for her first tests with Tennis Canada as a youngster.
Toupin recalls Collard playing with such intensity that her nose started bleeding on the court.
“I always saw that her body reacted to how she acted,” said Toupin. “At the start you saw right away her intensity. But you told yourself that it would maybe even be negative if she wasn’t able to manage.”
While her emotions often contributed to her demise on the court in the past, Collard has evolved into an even-keeled player who uses her intensity to her advantage – an edge that she has over a lot of her competitors, Toupin said.
After suffering her share of injuries, Collard knew that she had to make a change in how she approached the game to prevent them from getting worse or happening again.
“I’ve become emotionally very stable,” she said. “I’m very positive and that really helps me stay calm in my head and make decisions that make sense on the court.”
Putting in around 25 hours of training every week to be at the top of her game, one of the most challenging elements of her regimen is managing time and dedicating enough hours to schoolwork.
With a fully loaded travel schedule, especially in the last year, Collard is enrolled in an online program at l’Académie des Estacades in Trois-Rivières to continue her studies while playing tennis at the highest level.
With nothing promised in athletics considering the unpredictability of injuries, Collard knows about the importance of being successful on and off the court.
“It’s really important,” she said. “Even if my goal is to have a career in tennis, I know that I never know what could happen with injuries and all that. So, for sure school is very important.”
“The hardest part is really concentrating and being very focused on school when I’m in tournaments,” she added. “Because sometimes I’m very tired on certain nights and I don’t feel like doing homework and I’d rather just watch Netflix or something like that. But you have to work. That’s that hardest thing – finding the time and working when you have the time.”
And with already plenty of success on her resume, Collard isn’t planning on stopping any time soon.
Toupin believes the next two to three years of her career will play a significant factor in her development and ultimately deciding the fate of her future as a tennis player.
“I think she’s definitely capable of becoming a professional player,” said Toupin. “What’s going to tell us if she’ll be able to reach the potential of a Félix Auger-Aliassime right now, Dennis Shapovalov, Bianca Andrescu is the next two to three years. Mélodie is very conscious that at 15-16-and-17-years-old there’s still a whole lot of things she can improve on. From 15-to-18-years-old remains a very important period for her.”
As one of the brightest up and coming talents from the region, Collard is thrilled to be in a position to inspire young players to participate in the sport, helping grow the game locally and hopefully aspire to play it at the highest level.
For Collard, it’s important to show that tennis players from Gatineau can make it just as big as anyone else.
“We don’t have a lot of big-name players in Gatineau,” she said. “There aren’t a lot of courts and all. It’d be fun to show that even with these courts, these places and just being from Gatineau, with coaches from Gatineau, I think it’s fun to show where we can go.”
Traveling the world and sometimes even getting paid to play the game she loves; Collard feels fortunate for the countless relationships and memories the sport has brought her over the course of her career and she’s excited for what the future holds.
“It’s a really great opportunity,” she said. “I get to travel and to see countries that I likely wouldn’t get to see if I wouldn’t be playing tennis. And I’ve met a lot of people and made friendships with people all across the world. For sure, it makes for great relationships and awesome places to go travel.”
