The spying scandal surrounding the women’s soccer team continues to make headlines. But the Canadian team will ultimately advance to the women’s soccer playoffs despite the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upholding the six-point deduction imposed by FIFA at the start of the tournament.
The Canadians absolutely had to get a win on Wednesday to be able to continue their journey. A successful bet for the defending champions, who defeated Colombia 1-0, after winning their first two matches against New Zealand and France.
Vanessa Gilles scored the decisive goal with a header in the 61st minute.e minute. It was his second goal of the tournament and his sixth with the national team. Jessie Fleming provided the assist.
The Canadians and Colombians therefore finished tied for second place in Group A, but the former had the upper hand by virtue of their superior goal differential, at +3.
Canada will now face Germany in the quarter-finals.
The Maple Leaf found itself in trouble when an analyst for the women’s soccer team was caught recording footage of a New Zealand training session before the fortnight had even started.
FIFA suspended three Canadian coaches for one year, including women’s coach Bev Priestman, and Canada Soccer was fined more than $300,000. The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) appealed the decision but was unsuccessful.
The CAS special tribunal, which reviewed the case, said it would publish the reasons for its verdict at a later date.
The CAS decision wasn’t the only disappointment for the Canadian clan on Wednesday. Quebec’s Tammara Thibeault, ranked third in the world and third seed in the 75kg competition, was knocked out in her first boxing match by Cindy Winner Djankeu Ngamba, of the Refugee Olympic Team.
Thibeault, who was clearly aiming for the gold medal, had won her previous 25 fights and was the reigning world champion. Canada has not won an Olympic medal in this discipline since David Defiagbon won silver in Atlanta in 1996.
In the pool, Canadians Caeli McKay and Kate Miller finished fourth in the synchronized 10-metre platform diving event, less than five points away from bronze.
McKay, who had also finished fourth three years earlier at the Tokyo Games alongside Quebec’s Meaghan Benfeito, described this new result as “heartbreaking.”
The two Canadians collected 299.22 points after their five jumps. China’s Yuxi Chen and Hongchan Quan won with 359.10 points. North Korea’s Jin Mi Jo and Mi Rae Kim followed with 315.90 points, and Britain’s Andrea Spendolini Sirieix and Lois Toulson rounded out the podium with 304.38 points.
Canada’s day could end on a high note, however, as Montreal’s Ilya Kharun is set to compete in the 200m butterfly final in the evening. He was the third fastest swimmer in the semi-finals.
Kelsey Wong and Sydney Pickrem will try to qualify for the final in the women’s 200m breaststroke, something Summer McIntosh achieved in the 200m butterfly in the morning.
The 17-year-old has already been crowned champion in the 400m individual medley and took bronze in the 400m freestyle.
Before the evening competitions in Paris, Canada had six medals, including two gold and two silver.