Michael Burgess tries to find the Canadian Olympic Committee to get answers about the Drone Gate situation. Video / Michael Burgess
Three key things
– The scandal began with allegations of drone use, which first emerged late on Tuesday in Paris.
– Both the IOC and FIFA are conducting investigations into the drone use, which is reported to have occurred over an extended period.
– Canadian fans are href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/olympics/olympics-2024-drone-by-canadian-staff-member-caught-watching-football-ferns-training/V35MM6CRYNAOHKYHCBI65V2RSY/">shocked and embarrassed by the revelations, with a mix of disappointment and calls for a thorough investigation.
In 20 years of journalism, it’s hard to remember anything as bizarre as Dronegate.
In media terms, it’s an absolute zinger – as good as it gets. Sport, spying, subterfuge, arrests and people sent home. There aren’t often many big news breaks at an Olympics – with so much on-field action going on – and rarely something involving New Zealand.
But this has captured the imagination, on a global scale. The story was prominent in the Guardian, New York Times and Washington Post, among many other titles. It got a full page in L‘Equipe, the bible of sports newspapers, during a home Olympics, when normally a group match between Canada and New Zealand wouldn’t even warrant a few lines.
It was in all the other French dailies, along with El Pais, the Spanish journal. It was also a hot topic in the main press centre, especially when people saw my New Zealand Herald shirt.
An Indian journalist wanted to talk about it, a Dutch writer interviewed me about it, a Chinese reporter asked for more information, while a local French editor was featuring it in her blog.
No one can understand it, which makes it even more juicy. I was also invited to be interviewed live on the Canada’s CBC News Network on Wednesday evening, the biggest cable news operator out of that country, with millions of viewers across Canada and worldwide.
As their producer wrote to me: “Huge story today, for us and New Zealand.”
It was a surreal experience, as I waited to go on air. I was in an alternative media centre in the city and had found somewhere quiet but a few minutes before the Zoom call was meant to start, a singer burst into song as part of a showcase of local entertainment.
That meant a quick pack up, as the thought of talking to millions of Canadians on live television while a local Paris singer – who was good – did a passable version of Englishman in New York just wasn’t going to fly.
I ran down a flight of stairs to the lower level, with laptop and bag in hand, before finding another room with passable Wi-Fi and less noise.
As I waited to be interviewed, the hosts were talking to the recently announced Canadian flagbearers, in French and English. It was a joyous occasion, though perhaps overshadowed by Dronegate, before they crossed to me.
We discussed what it means, why it may have happened, the motivations and the severity of the situation. One of the important points to make was the demarcation; was this a rogue action by Joseph Lombardi, or something more sinister and pre-planned?
I also made the point there had been questions about the Canadian team culture during last year’s Fifa Women’s World Cup and we also talked about the reaction in New Zealand. I also said that Canada, in our eyes, had always been known as a nation of fair play, which made it even harder to understand.
A single incident has morphed into at least two before the first clash with the Ferns, and after a team analyst and assistant coach were sent home, head coach Bev Priestman lost her Games role early in Friday morning (Paris time), with Team Canada announcing that she would also be heading back to North America.
There are allegations of drone use over a long period – stretching back years - while there is also an ongoing IOC and FIFA investigation into the team. It’s been a crazy time and Canadians here are in shock.
“It’s very upsetting,” said Susan Li, a visiting fan from Vancouver, British Colombia. “I know that it is not really part of our nation, the way we are. It’s not very Canadian obviously. A lot of people I know worked hard to get here and it’s a shame that a couple of people ruined it for them.”
At the same time, Li, who is the founder of the World Warrior Project, doesn’t think the nation needs to be ashamed due to the actions of a few individuals.
“I’m surprised and disappointed but it’s hard to feel ashamed because of one person,” added Li. “I don’t feel that one person should make the rest of the nation look bad or feel bad. Canada did the right thing, they started investigating straight away, so proud of them for stepping up quickly.”
Another Canadian, Lisa, who is originally from Montreal but is now a resident of Paris, was blindsided by the story.
“I wasn’t following the news,” said Lisa. “I am quite shocked that this happened but at the same time, I’m not completely surprised. [But] if the team was doing so well to begin with, why would they need to cheat and spy?”
In terms of what happens next, Lisa wants an in-depth investigation.
“I would interview all the players one by one – even if it takes a lot of time – to get a feel of what is going on behind the scenes,” said Lisa. “And then I think the coaches and whoever is managing this should be penalised but not the players.”
As she headed off to soak up the opening ceremony on Friday – while also looking forward to some Olympic events over the next week – she wanted to keep a low profile.
