by NICE, France — The women’s Olympic football tournament is getting off to an unexpected start following a complaint from the New Zealand Olympic Committee about a potential attempt to spy on a training session ahead of the Paris Games.
A drone flew over a Ferns training session in Saint-Étienne, France, on Monday, the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) said in a statement Tuesday. Ferns staff reported the drone to police, who arrested the operator, identified as a staff member of the “Canadian women’s football team,” the statement said. The NZOC reported the incident to the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) integrity unit and asked the Canadian Olympic Committee to conduct a review.
New Zealand and Canada are in Group A of the Olympic tournament, along with France and Colombia.
The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) released its own statement Wednesday morning in Paris, saying the drone operator was an “unaccredited member of Canada Soccer’s support team” but confirming that the staff member “is believed to have used a drone to record the New Zealand women’s soccer team during training.”
The COC apologised to the players, the federation and the New Zealand Olympic Committee, saying it was “shocked and disappointed”.
In France, it is not yet clear what the consequences of this alleged attempt to record another team’s training session might be. The COC said it plans to discuss next steps with the IOC, Paris 2024, Canada Soccer and FIFA, and will provide an update later Wednesday.
Drones have been a big story at Paris 2024, with French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal saying on Tuesday that an average of six drones a day were being intercepted at Olympic venues.
The women’s football tournament will begin on July 25, with Canada and New Zealand starting play in Group A at 5 p.m. local time/11 a.m. ET in Saint-Étienne. Canada is currently ranked eighth in the world by FIFA, while New Zealand is ranked 28th.
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(Photo: Jean-Pierre Clatot / AFP via Getty)
