Canada kicks out two after drone spying scandal at Paris Olympics

The Paris Olympics have become embroiled in controversy following a drone spying incident. The Canadian women’s soccer team has come under scrutiny after two staff members were dismissed for allegedly using a drone to spy on New Zealand’s practice sessions.

The controversy began on Monday when New Zealand Football lodged a complaint with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) about drones hovering over their closed training sessions.

In response to the allegations, the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) launched an investigation and confirmed that two staff members were involved. Assistant coach Jasmine Mander and analyst Joseph Lombardi were identified as responsible parties. Both were immediately removed from the Canadian Olympic team and sent home. The COC has also issued a public apology to New Zealand Football and emphasized its commitment to fair play and sportsmanship by making its staff undertake mandatory ethics training.

Canada’s head coach, Bev Priestman, took accountability for the incident by voluntarily stepping down from coaching the upcoming match against New Zealand. She expressed deep regret for the actions of her team members and assured the public that such behavior does not reflect the team’s values.

“I am ultimately responsible for the conduct in our program,” Priestman said. “Accordingly, to emphasize our team’s 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.”

During a press briefing, COC chief executive David Shoemaker corroborated that Priestman had “no involvement, no knowledge” of the incident. “We thought about all repercussions for Bev. At the end of the day, the drone footage related to the filming of two New Zealand practices and it remained in the hands of the pilot of the drone and the advantage that, I guess, was intended to be obtained was not attained, at least to the best of our ability to ascertain.”

It’s worth pointing out that the Paris Olympics incident is not the first time a Canadian soccer team has tried to spy on an international rival’s training session with a drone. According to media reports, in 2021, Honduras stopped a training session ahead of its men’s World Cup qualifier against Canada after spotting a drone above the field. The teams played to a 1-1 draw.

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