PARIS, France –
FIFA has deducted six points from Canada in Olympic women’s soccer standings and banned three coaches for one year in drone-spying scandal, The Associated Press reports.
News of the decision follows the Canadian Olympic Committee’s move to oust the women’s national soccer team head coach, Bev Priestman, for the remainder of the Paris Olympic games after the New Zealand Olympic Committee filed a formal complaint about a drone spotted filming its women’s soccer team practicing on July 22.
Local police detained the alleged drone operator, Joseph Lombardi, described as an “unaccredited analyst with Canada Soccer,” who subsequently received an eight-month suspended jail sentence and was sent home along with assistant coach Jasmine Mander.
Priestman, Mander and Lombardi are the officials named in a statement from FIFA announcing the bans.
The Canadian Olympic Committee has apologized to New Zealand, and says assistant coach Andy Spence will replace Priestman for the remainder of this year’s games.
With files from CTVNews.ca’s Lynn Chaya and Daniel Otis and from The Associated Press
This is a developing story. More to come.