Born in Switzerland in 1890, at age 19 he was already a ski champion and instructor in the Swiss army. Here in Canada, the Laurentide Inn in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts asked him to come and teach skiing. Accepting the invitation, he came to live in the area in 1911 at the age of 21, bringing with him one hundred pairs of skis. In the winter of 1915, he and his wife Léa opened the first ski centre in Québec, the Chalet Cochand. The couple offered accommodation and food, and of course, skiing lessons! Émile Cochand played an important role in the creation of the Laurentian Resorts Association, which contributed to the development of tourism in the region. He also played an integral part in promoting the first “snow train”” linking the United States to the Laurentians and he participated in the first ever Winter Sports Show held at Madison Square Garden in New York in 1938. The development of skiing in the Laurentians would surely not have been as remarkable if Émile Cochand did not get involved as much in the region.