FSL Champion Stories

Bradley Cooper learned French while studying in Aix-en-Provence when he was in college. Don't believe it? Check out this interview he did with media in France to promote his film, The Hangover 2. In the interview he answers questions from French fans!

The beloved late Alex Trebek hosted Jeopardy! for 37 seasons. That’s over 7,500 episodes! He was intelligent, quick-witted...and spoke French! His mother was Franco-Ontarian and Alex credited his mom for inspiring him to learn French. Check out this acceptance speech where he praises Franco-Canadian culture, in both our official languages.

Annamie Paul is the first Black Canadian and Jewish woman to be elected as a leader of a federal party in Canada. Growing up in Toronto, her mother was determined that she and her siblings would grow up bilingual. This French interview was done right after she was nominated as the new leader of the Green Party of Canada.

With 23 Grand Slam titles under her belt, Serena Williams is one of the most dominant tennis players of all time. She learned French as a teenager because she dreamed of winning the French Open and accepting her trophy in French. She accomplished that goal in 2002 and today she’s passing on her love of French by teaching it to her daughter, Alexis!

Sam Roberts and his band have been nominated for fourteen Juno Awards, winning six! They were named Artist of the Year twice and Album of the Year once. Growing up in Montréal, Sam was exposed to English and French from an early age and loves being able to speak both official languages!