Statement released on alleged spying by Canadian Olympic soccer team vs. New Zealand

While the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris is not until Friday, soccer will get underway a day early. Canada and New Zealand are set to face one another on the women’s side but not without some controversy first.

On Tuesday, the Canadian Olympic Committee released a statement regarding a “non-accredited” member of the women’s soccer team using a drone to record New Zealand’s practice. They offered up an apology to the Kiwis while claiming to be “shocked and disappointed” by the news.

“The Canadian Olympic Committee was made aware that a non-accredited member of the Canada Soccer support team was detained by French authorities in Saint-Etienne following a complaint by New Zealand Football on July 22,” the statement said.

“The staff member is believed to have been using a drone to record the New Zealand women’s football team during practice.

“The Canadian Olympic Committee stands for fair-play and we are shocked and disappointed. We offer our heartfelt apologies to New Zealand Football, to all the players affected, and to the New Zealand Olympic Committee.

“We are reviewing next steps with the IOC, Paris 2024, Canada Soccer, and FIFA. We Will provide an update later today (July 24).”

There is a lot of prior history between Canada and New Zealand in women’s soccer. The two countries have met on 15 different occasions, with 10 of them being won by the folks from the Great White North. Four have gone against them, while one draw did occur.

As for the upcoming tournament, Canada is the reigning Gold Medal winner in women’s soccer, being the final team standing during Tokyo 2020. The previous two editions resulted in Bronze Medals, being on the podium in three straight Olympics. So there are plenty of expectations surrounding the team heading to Paris.

The hosts, France, and Colombia are also scheduled to play Canada in Group A. New Zealand will be their first game on Thursday, followed by the French on July 28, and then the final group stage game against the South American side on July 31.

More is surely to come from this statement, with something surely coming from the IOC. While spying on practices is nothing new in the sports world, it’s still looked down upon, and widely taken seriously. Canada claiming the incident occurred with someone not associated with the team could help their case when discussing the matter.