New Delhi: New Zealand’s Olympic Committee have said that they have complained to the International Olympic Committee’s integrity unit after its women’s football team was disrupted by a drone flown by a Canadian team staff member. The allegations come ahead of Thursday’s opening match at the tournament between defending Olympic champions Canada and New Zealand.
“On July 22, a drone was flown over the New Zealand women’s football team training session in St Etienne,” the NZOC said. They reported that the support members quickly reported the incident to the police. This led to the drone operator, identified as a support member of the broader Canadian Women’s football team, being detained.
NZOC has formally complained to the IOC integrity unit and have notified Canada for a full review and that the whole situation is about “integrity and fairness.” Team Canada, in response, have issued an apology and are themselves investigating the events that led such a bizarre situation.
The Canadian Olympic Committee have said that they are aware that a “non-accredited” member of its support was using a drone to record the Silver Ferns’ practice. They have further said that they stand with ” fair play.” They added that they were “reviewing the next steps” and would cooperate with the IOC, the Paris organising committee, and FIFA.
The COC’s official statement was,“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.”
This won’t be the first time that the Canadian football team have been embroiled in a drone-related controversy involving an opponent’s training session. In 2021, in Toronto, Honduras had to stop their training session before their men’s World Cup qualifier against Canada after spotting a drone above the field, according to media reports. The teams played 1-1.
New Zealand Olympic Committee have reported International Olympic Committee’s integrity over drone disruption from Canada team’s staff. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
