Women's Olympic football champions Canada have removed three members of staff from their Olympic team, after a drone was seen flying over opponent's training sessions.
Canada beat New Zealand in their first game of their defence of the Olympic Gold.
The drama began well before kick-off however as New Zealand players claimed to have spotted drones flying over their training sessions on two different occasions.
The initial statement released on Wednesday morning by the Canadian Olympic Committee acknowledged that a "non-accredited member" of the women's football team had been detained by French authorities.
Assistant Coach Jasmine Mander and Analyst Joseph Lombardo are two of the coaches that were sent home before the Paris games began.
Lombardi was identified in a subsequent statement as an "unaccredited analyst", as it was revealed that he was the staff member detained by French police for the drone incidents.
The Canadian Olympic Committee also stated that Mander is the Assistant Coach who Lombardi reported to, meaning they were both handed the same punishment and sent to pack their bags.
Following the 2 - 1 victory over New Zealand, the Canada Soccer Federation suspended manager Beverly Priestman, which resulted in the Olympic committee dismissing her as head coach of the Olympic football team.
Jasmine Mander's brother, Amar Mander, is a physiotherapist for the New Zealand women's football team. They were excited to face each other in the Olympics, but things may have become too competitive, as Jasmine went too far with her spying measures to attempt to beat her brother's side.
A statement from the New Zealand Olympic Committee about the drone spotted spying on their training sessions said "Team support members immediately reported the incident to police, leading to the drone operator, who has been identified as a support staff member of the wider Canadian Women's football team, to be detained."
The incident now has people casting questions on the integrity of the Canadian team.
Head Coach, Priestman, will be absent from the rest of this tournament due to the scandal, saying she is "ultimately responsible".
Whilst Canada would have hoped that spying on their opponents would have given them an advantage in their opening fixture, the suspensions that came their way proved to be a significant disadvantage.
That being said, the champions began their tournament defence with a 2 - 1 win over the 2023 World Cup hosts. The Maple Leafs trailed 1 - 0 for most of the first half, but goals either side of the break from Arsenal's Cloe Lacasse and Roma's Evelyne Viens gave the champions a three-point start in Group A.
With the Olympic tournament underway in France, Canada now face a huge challenge to keep their focus on their football, with three members of staff, including their manager, sent home from Paris.
It will certainly be a tall order for Canada to defend their Olympic title.
Opmerkingen