Being in Ottawa for Fight Week was bittersweet for Chad Laprise.
Taking part in the UFC #WeAreAllFighters event at 100% Martial Arts & Fitness — the UFC partnered with Special Olympics Ontario-Ottawa — the outgoing Chatham-Kent, Ontario, Canada native helped lead a collection of eager participants through a series of techniques and drills. The activity culminated with the Special Olympics athletes letting loose a string of attacks in combination similar to what Laprise and his colleagues might unfurl in the Octagon.
Always eager to give back, the smile never left the Montreal-based lightweight’s face as his students put a charge into the focus mitts and Muay Thai pads Laprise held out to catch their attacks.