May 5, 2007 – Mr. Alain Lemaire, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cascades Inc., revealed the names of the 17 recipients who will share $66,000 in bursaries for the third edition of the Cascades Bursary Program, administered by the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence. Twelve athletes from last year renewed their partnership with Cascades and five very promising new recruits have joined them this year.

In 2005, Cascades announced the creation of its program in collaboration with the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence by investing an amount of $225,000. This amount has been distributed in bursaries to athletes and funds for the Foundation as follows: $50,000 in 2005, $75,000 in 2006 and $100,000 in 2007. “We know that athletes, in addition to their studies, must spend many hours in training in order to attain a high level of achievement in their sport. The costs linked to training and competitions create stress for athletes and their families, mentioned Mr. Lemaire. Cascades believe that the financial support given to athletes through these bursaries will help diminish the financial burden and enables these young athletes, who represent the hopefuls of Quebec sportive elite of tomorrow, to concentrate on their passion. Since sport was always a way of life strongly encouraged by Cascades, this involvement with the Foundation is quite natural.”

Among last year recipients, three of them have surprised many experts by their exceptional performances: Alex Harvey (cross country skiing), 18 years old, son of Olympic athlete Pierre Harvey became the first Quebecer and Canadian to receive a medal at the Junior World Championships; Christelle Doyon (snowboard cross) 18 years old, young 2006 World Junior Champion, finished 8th at the last Senior World Championships; and Émilie Fournel (sprint CanoeKayak) 20 years old, has won five gold medals at the last Senior Canadian Championships and also won the national trials last April.

Among the 17 recipients of the 2007 Bursary Program, five new talents have joined the Cascades team. Among them, Marianne Hogan (triathlon) 16 years old, 24th at the Junior World Championships (19 years old and under); Valérie Lambert (short track speed skating), silver medallist at the 500 m at the Canada Games; Julian Bernal-Potvin (white water CanoeKayak), qualified for the Senior National Team at only 16 years old; Marianne Jodoin (tennis), Canadian Champion in single and in double (14 years old and under), and Elisabeth Abanda (tennis), the youngest bursary recipient of the whole group, Canadian Champion in single (12 years old and under).

Two female athletes were awarded, in addition to their bursary for athletic excellence, a second bursary for academic excellence for an amount of $1,000 for their results in school. Christelle Doyon has obtained a College R Score of 36.3 in Health Science at Cegep Sherbrooke and will enroll in medicine next September. Marie-Claude Surprenant, bronze medallist in the Junior Canadian Championships in 2006 has a College R Score of 35 in Health Science at Cegep St-Hyacinthe, she would like to pursue her studies in physiotherapy.

Mr. Claude Chagnon, President of the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence, is very impressed by the talent and determination of the 2007 group of bursary recipients. “Once again this year, Cascades bursary recipients distinguished themselves on the international scene with results that surpassed our most optimistic forecast. This by itself justify the Cascades Bursary Program and proves its importance and credibility by addressing the needs of less known young athletes who are nevertheless, very promising.”

Recipients of the 2007 Cascades Bursary Program (in alphabetical order)

1. Élisabeth Abanda – Tennis – $2,500 – Montréal
2. V̩ronique Bilodeau РTriathlon Р$2,500 РLongueuil
3. Éric Boily – Cycling – $4,000 – Saguenay
4. Mathieu Bois – Swimming – $4,000 – St-Hubert
5. Christelle Doyon – Snowboardcross – $6,000* – Magog
6. Émilie Fournel – Sprint CanoeKayak – $5,000 – Dorval
7. Raphaël Gagné – Mountain biking – $4,000 – Lac-Beauport
8. Alex Harvey РCross country skiing Р$5,000 РSt-F̩rr̩ol-les-Neiges
9. Marianne Hogan – Triathlon – $2,500 – Bedford
10. St̩phanie Horner РSwimming Р$4,000 РBeaconsfield
11. Marianne Jodoin – Tennis – $3,000 – Varennes
12. Keven Lacombe – Cycling – $4,000 – Amos
13. Val̩rie Lambert РShort track speed skating Р$3,500 РSherbrooke
14. Jean-Philippe Le Guellec РBiathlon Р$5,000 РVal B̩lair
15. Justine L’Heureux – Long track speed skating – $4,000 – St-Tite
16. Julian Bernal-Potvin – Whitewater CanoeKayak – $3,000 – Chelsea
17. Marie-Claude Surprenant – Mountain biking – $3,500* – Sutton

*Christelle Doyon has obtained a bursary for athletic excellence of $5,000 and an additional bursary for academic excellence for an amount of $1,000. Marie-Claude Surprenant was awarded a bursary of $2,500 for athletic excellence and an additional bursary for an amount of $1,000 as well for academic excellence.

About Cascades
Founded in 1964, Cascades produces, transforms and markets packaging and tissue products. Cascades employs more than 14,000 employees who work in more than 100 modern, flexible production units located in North America and Europe. Cascades’ management philosophy, its more than 40 years of experience in recycling, and its continued efforts in research and development are strengths which enable the company to create new products for its customers and offer its shareholders higher returns. The Cascades shares trade on the Toronto stock exchange under the ticker symbol CAS.

About the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence
The mission of the Foundation is to financially support and encourage student-athletes in their pursuit of excellence and to promote athletes as role models in Quebec society. During 2007, the Foundation will distribute $550,000 to student-athletes through its different bursary programs. For more information, visit our website at www.faeq.com.