The Canadian women’s football team faced a significant setback on Wednesday as an assistant coach and an analyst were sent home from the Olympics.
The decision followed an incident where a staff member was detained by French authorities for flying a drone over a New Zealand training session in Saint-Etienne.
The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) announced that Joseph Lombardi, an unaccredited analyst with Canada Soccer, and Jasmine Mander, an assistant coach to whom Lombardi reported, were the individuals sent back to Canada. The incident involved New Zealand lodging a formal complaint with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) integrity unit, demanding answers from Canada.
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“The COC is in contact with the IOC and with FIFA. Canada Soccer has been transparent and cooperative throughout the process,” a statement from the COC read. “The COC will continue to review this matter and may take further action if necessary.”
In addition to the staff members being sent home, Canadian head coach Bev Priestman announced that she will not participate in the opening game of Canada’s gold medal defense against New Zealand, scheduled for Thursday. Priestman stated that it would be inappropriate for her to be on the bench during this match, given the circumstances.
“On behalf of our entire team, I first and foremost want to apologise to the players and staff at New Zealand Football and to the players on Team Canada,” Priestman said. “This does not represent the values that our team stands for. I am ultimately responsible for the conduct of our programme. Accordingly, to emphasise our team’s commitment to integrity, I have decided to voluntarily withdraw from coaching the match on Thursday.”
The decision underscores a broader commitment to upholding ethical standards and maintaining the integrity of the competition. The Canadian team’s focus now shifts to addressing the issue and ensuring that such incidents do not recur as they prepare to defend their gold medal in the ongoing Olympic tournament.
