BLOGGER´S PROFILE: Mike Ladouceur

Ahoj, ja jsem Mike Ladouceur!

During the last six years I have been participating in the development of lacrosse overseas with Rebel Lacrosse Wear. Bill Curtis first introduced me to Prague in 2003. I fell in love with the people and their desire to better themselves on and off the field. So I have been asked to write this blog, to share my lacrosse experience, but first I think that it’s necessary to share where I come from.

I was introduced to the game of lacrosse when I was six years old, in Ontario Canada. Like most Canadian boys my first love was hockey. So the transition from the ice to the concrete came naturally (we played box lacrosse). Lacrosse possessed all of the fast paced action, contact and skills that hockey offered during the winter. It was a great way to cross train for hockey during the summer. Little did I know that my passion for lacrosse would eventually precede hockey all together.

By the age thirteen I was a student of the game. I officiated, coached, and played in the Ontario Lacrosse Association (OLA). My understanding of game grew with each passing season and I began to stand out amongst my peers. In my fifteenth year (my ninth year of lacrosse) I was drafted first overall in the Ontario Jr. A. lacrosse league, and began playing against players who were 6 years my senior. Since I was physically inferior, I began to concentrate on improving my stick skills and to further my knowledge of the game. I began playing field lacrosse in search of the edge over my competition. I was recognized for my efforts in my sixteenth year and was named to the Canadian U-19 National Team and competed at the World Championships at Long Island, Hofstra in 1992. I was the only Canadian selected to the All-World team.

My efforts on the field earned me a scholarship to Canisius College in Buffalo, NY. I realized that playing on the field and in the box made me a well rounded player. I developed a style of lacrosse that brought me to the professional level. So after College I played in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) for the Albany Attack and the New Jersey Storm.

While playing professionally I found myself with the desire to give back to a sport that had given me so much, so I accepted a position with Metro Lacrosse to bring the sport to inner city kids who were otherwise less fortunate. I also accepted a position as assistant coach at Wheaton College, all the while playing professionally and working full time for STX Lacrosse. I was submerged in this lacrosse culture and began share my passion for the sport. I breathed lacrosse and in 2004 I was approached to start a brand new boy’s high school varsity lacrosse team. We had immediate success making playoffs every season, and even had players go on to play in college.

I now find myself very interested in the development of the sport internationally to share my passion for this game with people who are thirsty for it.