Canada’s Olympic women’s soccer team is in turmoil after officers were “greatly surprised and disenchanted” to discover that drones had been used to spy on their team. As a result, the body of workers contributors were “despatched home straight away,” and the head instructor could be absent when Canada takes on New Zealand in their Olympic opener on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) announced that a “non-authorized member of the Canada Soccer support team” had been detained by French authorities in Saint-Étienne, a metropolis 250 miles south of Paris, for improperly using a drone. This arrest follows a separate incident in which a drone was used to report New Zealand’s education sessions.
Head instructor Bev Priestman, who led the Canadian crew to gold three years ago in Tokyo, denied any involvement in the scheme but said she could voluntarily “step apart” for the primary game.
FIFA’s disciplinary committee has now opened court cases against Canada Soccer and numerous individuals, such as Priestman, amid these allegations.
The COC stated that the football crew’s workforce had been “obvious and cooperative in the course of the procedure.” Assistant instructor Andy Spence could be in charge of the defending champions once they face New Zealand.
The dramatic shake-up followed the New Zealand Olympic Committee’s document to the IOC about approximately suspicious drones flying over their crew practices on two events.
Following these allegations, the COC investigated and subsequently removed assistant teacher Jasmine Mander and Canada Soccer analyst Joseph Lombardi from the crew’s staff, declaring they had been “straight away sent home.”
Lombardi admitted to using the drone to seize New Zealand players wearing out their train’s instructions. Mander was also interviewed by officers; however, he denied any involvement in the recordings and was cleared of wrongdoing.
A 43-year-old Canadian man received an eight-month suspended sentence and the confiscation of his seized gadget after being charged with running an unmanned aircraft over a prohibited region, in line with a statement from a Saint-Étienne prosecutor translated by using CBC.
The COC stated that a football body of workers might be required to undergo obligatory ethics schooling.
The scandal has dampened spirits as Canada looks to protect its Olympic name.