The stadium was originally slated to be finished in 1972, but the grand opening was cancelled due to a strike by construction workers. The "Conseil des métiers de la construction" union headed by André "Dédé" Desjardins kept the construction site in "anarchic disorder" until the Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa bought him off in a secret deal. In his 2000 book "Notre Cher Stade Olympique", Taillibert wrote "If the Olympic Games took place, it was thanks to Dédé Desjardins. What irony!" Further delays ensued due to the stadium's unusual design and Taillibert's unwillingness to back down from his original vision of the stadium even in the face of escalating costs for raw materials. It did not help that the original project manager, Trudeau et Associés, seemed to be incapable of handling some of the most basic construction tasks. The Quebec provincial government finally lost patience with the delays and cost overruns in 1974, and threw Taillibert off the project.