Chantal Machabée

Chantal Machabée (born September 4, 1964) is a Canadian sports journalist, television presenter, and the current vice president of communication for the Montreal Canadiens. At 24 years old, she made history as the first woman to anchor a daily sports newscast in Quebec.

She spent over 32 years at Réseau des Sports (RDS) as a sports reporter, covering Quebec sports, including the Canadiens' daily activities. During this time, she became the first woman to host Montreal Canadiens hockey broadcasts on RDS.

Early life and education Chantal was born on September 4, 1964, in Laval, Quebec, at 12 Place Chopin in the Duvernay neighborhood. Her late father, André, and her mother, Huguette Lapierre, both worked in the perfume and cosmetics industry. Her sister, Manon, is the owner of a pet supply store.

Chantal once stated that she aspired to become a sports journalist for Le Journal de Montréal. However, her father, André, encouraged her to pursue political journalism instead, believing there were limited opportunities for women in sports journalism at the time. Interestingly, her parents were not avid sports fans. In her youth, her father would often take her to listen to speeches by René Lévesque, a man she greatly admired.

As a child, she would often say she would one day take Lionel Duval’s place. He was her role model, and she dreamed of the day she’d conduct intermission interviews during National Hockey League games.

From 1983 to 1985, she studied political science at the University of Montreal.

Career Throughout her career, which began in 1985, she has achieved numerous firsts for women in sports broadcasting in the province of Quebec and significantly contributed to the advancement of women in sports media.

In 1985, she wrote for La Presse canadienne and worked as a sports reporter for the NTR radio network, notably on the show Sportivement vôtre at CKSH (AM), hosted by Gilles Péloquin.

In the fall of 1985, she co-hosted the music show Graffiti at Much Music

In 1989, at only 24 years old, Machabée made history as the first woman to anchor a daily sports newscast in Quebec by hosting the premiere episode of Sports 30 on RDS.

On September 1, 1989, she hosted the very first episode of Sport 30 alongside Serge Deslongchamps, marking the network’s debut broadcast.

In 2011, Chantal and a few of her colleagues from RDS traveled to Kandahar, Afghanistan, to meet Canadian soldiers and produce television reports.

In 2012, she was part of Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium for the London Olympics on RDS.

Before returning to covering the daily activities of the Montreal Canadiens in 2012, she spent nearly 20 years as the anchor for the Sports 30 news bulletin. She was also the host and panelist on the sports talk show L'Antichambre.

In 2022, she became Vice President of Communications for the Montreal Canadiens, succeeding Paul Wilson, who was dismissed on November 28, 2021.

Awards and honors In 1998, she and her colleagues Claude Mailhot, Charles Perreault ,Guy Bertrand, Michel Lacroix received a Gémeaux Award for the best Sports Newscast

In 2023, she was awarded the Larry Fredericks Media Award.

In 2024, Machabée received the National Assembly’s Medal of Honour

Filmography

Television

Un gars, une fille S9.E1: L'électrocardiogramme (January 4, 2024) En direct de l'univers

Documentary

The Rebuild: Inside the Montreal Canadiens (2024) Bob Bissonnette: Rockstar. Pis pas à peu près (2019)