Canadian women鈥檚 soccer coach Bev Priestman removed herself from Thursday鈥檚 Olympic Games opener against New Zealand and two team staff members were sent home after two drone incidents.
Assistant coach Jasmine Mander, from North Delta, and Canada Soccer analyst Joseph Lombardi were ousted from the soccer team鈥檚 staff, the Canadian Olympic Committee said Wednesday in a statement in which it accepted Priestman鈥檚 decision to not coach the opener in Saint-Etienne, France.
The shakeup came after the COC鈥檚 review of a drone incidents in Saint-Etienne. There were reports that drones flew over New Zealand鈥檚 practice sessions both Monday and last Friday.
鈥淚 am ultimately responsible for conduct in our program,鈥� Priestman said in Wednesday鈥檚 statement. 鈥淎ccordingly, to emphasize our team鈥檚 commitment to integrity, I have decided to voluntarily withdraw from coaching the match on Thursday. In the spirit of accountability, I do this with the interests of both teams in mind and to ensure everyone feels that the sportsmanship of this game is upheld.鈥�
鈥淥n behalf of our entire team, I first and foremost want to apologize to the players and staff at New Zealand Football and to the players on Team Canada. This does not represent the values that our team stands for.鈥�
The COC also said that Canada Soccer staff will be required to undergo mandatory ethics training.
Canada is the defending Olympic champion in women鈥檚 soccer after capturing gold three years ago in Tokyo. New Zealand is ranked 28th in the world.
New Zealand鈥檚 Olympic Committee alerted police after a drone was flown over the women鈥檚 soccer team practice Monday, and the COC confirmed Tuesday that a 鈥渘on-accredited鈥� member of Canada鈥檚 soccer team staff was detained by French authorities.
The NZOC also registered a complaint with the International Olympic Committee鈥檚 integrity unit and had asked Canada for a full review.
The COC apologized to the NZOC and that country鈥檚 soccer federation, stating it was 鈥渟hocked and disappointed鈥� over the conduct.
It鈥檚 not the first time a Canadian soccer team has been involved in a drone controversy involving an international rival鈥檚 training session.
In 2021 at Toronto, Honduras stopped a training session ahead of its men鈥檚 World Cup qualifier against Canada after spotting a drone above the field, according to reports in Honduran media. The teams played to a 1-1 draw.
French security forces guarding Paris 2024 sites are intercepting an average of six drones per day, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said Tuesday.
Attal added the drones are often operated by 鈥渋ndividuals, maybe tourists wanting to take pictures.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 why it鈥檚 important to remind people of the rules. There鈥檚 a ban on flying drones,鈥� he said, according to multiple news outlets.
鈥淪ystems are in place to allow us to very quickly intercept (drones) and arrest their operators.鈥�
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