Canada Soccer head investigating 'systemic ethical shortcoming' amid spying scandal

SAINT-ETIENNE, FRANCE -

Canada Soccer chief executive officer Kevin Blue said he was investigating a potential "systemic ethical shortcoming" within the program but has not considered pulling the women's soccer team from the Paris Olympics due to a drone spying scandal.

Blue appeared on a 30-minute video call with media on Friday, hours after the federation suspended head coach Bev Priestman from the Games.

The defending Olympic champs defeated New Zealand 2-1 on Thursday, a day after two Canadian staff members were sent home after reports a drone was used to spy on New Zealand practices on two occasions before the tournament opener.

Blue said he has not considered a team withdrawal, primarily because "we feel like we have addressed the situation swiftly and significantly."

"It would be to the detriment of our players who have worked so hard and sacrificed quite a bit to be Olympians and (they) have not engaged in unethical behaviour," Blue said. "I will not consider us withdrawing on the basis of the fact that we support our players as Olympians and their right to be here and their right to compete."

• Canada's men's and women's soccer teams have relied on drones and spying for years: TSN sources

Earlier, Canadian Olympic Committee CEO David Shoemaker said Priestman was likely aware drones were used to spy on the opposing team's training sessions in France.

"One of the key pieces of information was the conclusion from Canada Soccer that she needed to be suspended, based on their accumulation of facts," Shoemaker said at a news conference at Canada Olympic House in Paris.

"I've seen some of them, some of the information they have, and we've gathered some additional information ourselves that made me conclude that she was highly likely to have been aware of the incident here in Saint-Etienne."

Priestman voluntarily removed herself from the opening game at Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium. She'd said the previous day she didn't direct individuals to spy on New Zealand and was "highly disappointed" to learn of it.

Shoemaker said Wednesday he was persuaded that Priestman had "no involvement, no knowledge of the incident," but his opinion later changed.

The decision to kick Priestman out of the Games was made on Blue's recommendation, who stated in a release Friday that more information had recently come to light about previous incidents of drone spying predating the Paris Games.

Blue has pledged an independent review of the situation.

"We imposed the ultimate sanction the Canadian Olympic Committee can impose, bearing in mind that we oversee soccer players and the staff for this limited window with the Olympic Games, in removing them from the Olympic team, including the head coach, and sending them home," Shoemaker said.

"The most important piece of information that I learned was that, in the interim 24 hours that the CEO of Canada Soccer had been on the ground in Saint-Etienne, he came to the conclusion that Bev Priestman needed to be suspended. We have seen some of that information. We fully support that it's the right decision under the circumstances."

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Canada's second game is against host France on Sunday in St-Etienne. Shoemaker also said he's comfortable with the defending women's soccer champions continuing to compete in the Games.

However, FIFA's disciplinary committee is looking into the matter, and the gold medal that Canada won on penalty kicks against Sweden in Tokyo is now under scrutiny. Priestman was Canada's head coach there, too.

"There now appears to be information that could tarnish that Olympic performance in Tokyo," Shoemaker said.

"It makes me ill. It makes me sick to my stomach to think that there could be something that calls into question … one of my favourite Olympic moments in history, that women's team winning that gold medal against all odds in COVID restrictions."

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Shoemaker acknowledged the scandal impacted Canada's image to start the Summer Games in Paris, but hoped it wouldn't detract from what is expected to be a strong performance by the team as a whole.

"Subsequent findings involving individuals at Canada Soccer have been not only incredibly disturbing, but also all encompassing for us these last few days," said COC president and Olympic rower Tricia Smith at the news conference.

"What we saw this week is not my experience of sport in Canada. It's not who we are."

Soccer's misconduct overshadowed both the COC's announcement Wednesday of flag-bearers Maude Charron and Andre De Grasse for the opening ceremonies, and also Friday's ribbon-cutting to open Canada Olympic House.

"It's sad. It's surprising," said Charron, who won a weightlifting Olympic gold medal in Tokyo. "In my sport, we're doing a lot of work to stay true and play fair. Every sport has different technique to do or different strategies. My job here as an athlete stays the same.

"I guess it stresses more a bit the athletes in soccer. But I can't talk for them. I can only talk for me."

With files from Gemma Karstens-Smith and Donna Spencer in Paris.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 26, 2024.