A member of the Canadian women’s football team was arrested by police for flying a drone over a training session in Saint-Étienne, New Zealand, the Canadians’ future opponent on Thursday at Geoffroy-Guichard.
After two days in police custody, “this 43-year-old Canadian national will be brought before the public prosecutor on Wednesday afternoon” for “flying a drone in a prohibited area”, the public prosecutor of Saint-Étienne, David Charmatz, told AFP.
The man is to be tried in a preliminary admission of guilt procedure (CRPC), a source close to the investigation told AFP.
The person piloting the drone is an unaccredited member of the Canadian team, according to a statement from the Canadian committee, which is in contact with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and FIFA to determine what action to take.
“We offer our sincere apologies to New Zealand, all affected players and the New Zealand Olympic Committee,” the Canadian Olympic Committee said in a statement Wednesday, following Tuesday’s flyover.
The Canadian women, the reigning Olympic champions, face New Zealand on Thursday for the first group match, before meeting the French team on Sunday.
Fair play is of the utmost importance.
The actions of those involved in the incident do not reflect the values of Canada or the sport.
I am in communication with the Canadian Olympic Committee as well as Canada Soccer.
— Carla Qualtrough (@CQualtro) July 24, 2024
The New Zealand Olympic Committee said team members reported the incident to police and the drone operator was arrested.
“Team members immediately reported the incident to police, which led to the arrest of the drone operator, who was identified as a member of the Canadian women’s football team support staff,” the NZOC said, while calling on Canada to conduct a “full review of the situation.”
“NZOC and New Zealand Football are committed to the integrity and fairness of the Olympic Games and are deeply shocked and disappointed by this incident, which occurred just three days before the two teams were due to compete,” the statement continued.