About Richard Martel

Richard Martel is a hockey coach and politician, born on March 23, 1961, in Chicoutimi. He holds two bachelor’s degrees from the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC) and spent several years working in secondary education before following his passion for hockey into a professional coaching career.

From 1990 to 2011, Martel coached in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), most notably with the Chicoutimi Saguenéens from 2003 to 2011. In 2010, he set a league record with 570 career wins—a milestone that stood until 2024. After taking a year off, he headed to Europe, accepting a head coaching role in Sweden in 2012 and continuing his career in France from 2014 to 2015.

Returning to Quebec, he joined the Jonquière Marquis senior team as head coach and general manager from 2016 to 2017. He concluded his hockey career in 2018 after serving as commissioner of the North American Hockey League.

Widely known across Quebec for his coaching achievements and his trademark passion and intensity, Martel was approached to run for mayor of Saguenay and to enter provincial politics—offers he declined. He was, however, drawn to federal politics and announced his candidacy in the December 2017 by-election following the resignation of the Liberal MP for Chicoutimi–Le Fjord.

Martel was elected as the Conservative Member of Parliament for the riding on June 18, 2018, winning by over 5,500 votes. That same year, he was appointed Official Opposition Critic for National Defence. He was re-elected in 2019 by a narrower margin of 834 votes and served as the Conservative Party’s Quebec lieutenant from 2020 to 2022 under then-leader Erin O’Toole. He was again re-elected in 2021 and 2025.

Currently, Richard Martel serves as a member of the Standing Committee on International Trade and as the Shadow Minister responsible for Sport and the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec.