The Canadian women’s soccer team will be missing a very important person for its Paris Games opener in the midst of an Olympic scandal.
Canadian coach Bev Priestman has removed herself from Thursday’s 2024 Games debut against New Zealand because of a drone incident earlier this week, the Canadian Olympic Committee announced Wednesday.
The COC also announced that Joseph Lombardi, an unaccredited analyst with Canada Soccer, is being removed from the Canadian Olympic team and will be sent home immediately.
Jasmine Mander, an assistant coach to whom Lombardi reports to, is being removed from the Canadian Olympic team and will be sent home immediately.
The COC said Tuesday that a “non-accredited” member of Canada Soccer’s support team was detained by French authorities in Saint-Étienne for allegedly using a drone to record New Zealand’s team during practice.
“On behalf of our entire team, I first and foremost want to apologize to the players and staff at New Zealand Football and to the players on Team Canada. This does not represent the values that our team stands for,” Priestman said in a statement.
“I am ultimately responsible for conduct in our program. 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.”
Lombardi, a 43-year-old native of Brampton, Ont., is listed on Canada Soccer’s web site as having served on the Canadian women’s team’s staff at the FIFA World Cup in 2023. He also has worked for six Canadian youth teams at FIFA competitions.
Lombardi earned his Canada Soccer Coaching B Diploma in 2006 and his Canada Soccer Coaching A Diploma in 2009.
The COC made the announcement less than 45 minutes before Priestman and several players were scheduled to meet the media in France.
The COC says it has in contact with the IOC and FIFA. The COC added it will continue to review the matter and may take further action.
Priestman was named head coach of Canada in 2020 and guided the team to its first Olympic gold medal the following year in Tokyo.