Montreal police officers Erick Denino and Valérie Guérin-Thériault were on duty when a young man came up and challenged them.
They were patrolling near the Bartendaz Day of Movement event at Jean-Brillant Park in Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough.
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Thomas Laliberté said he wanted to see how many dips and chin-ups the officers could do.
“I did 45 dips and he did approximately 40. I stopped because he stopped,” Laliberté told Global News.
“But the important point is not really to win this challenge, it was to show that whoever you are, you can do it.”
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The 20-year-old was introduced to calisthenics four years ago.
It’s a form of urban street work out where individuals and groups perform gravity-defying exercises to improve balance, agility and co-ordination.
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He now trains with Team Tribarta and competes.
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Laliberté said he would have understood if Denino had refused the dip challenge, as he was working.
“It was really nice of him to accept the challenge,” the 20-year-old told Global News.
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As for Denino and Guérin-Thériault, they admit that police aren’t always well seen.
“Sometimes, people think we’re not approachable, but we’re not just there to give tickets,” Denino said.
They say that’s why they try to take a few minutes here and there when they can to interact with people.
“When we have the chance to do something, even for just five or ten minutes, we like to do it,” Guérin-Thériault added.
rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
Follow @rachel_lau
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