soccer

Thursday July 25, 2024

Canada's women's soccer team has marred the start of Paris 2024 with a scandal involving espionage through a drone, casting a shadow over their Olympic reputation and joining the ranks of infamous state-sponsored cheating scandals.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday July 25, 2024

Link to the animated version of this editorial cartoon.

Canada’s Soccer Scandal: A Humiliating Start to Paris 2024

December 3, 2022

In a misstep that has overshadowed their gold-medal glory, the Canadian women’s soccer team has managed to kick off the Paris 2024 Olympics with a scandal that’s less “sportsmanship” and more “spy game.” Yes, Canada’s latest Olympic entry is not a record-breaking performance but a full-blown scandal involving espionage with a drone.

Let’s put this into perspective. When we talk about state-sponsored doping, countries like Russia, China, and North Korea come to mind. Russia’s doping scandal, exposed in 2015, involved a sprawling state-supported program so elaborate it could have been scripted by a spy novelist. This wasn’t just about athletes taking banned substances; it was a coordinated effort involving falsified tests and a state-run cover-up. The fallout? Russian athletes were banned from competing under their flag, and the country faced severe sanctions from international sports organizations.

News: Canadian Women’s Soccer Team Caught Spying on Opponent With Drone Ahead of Olympics

August 1, 2012

China, too, has had its fair share of doping controversies. In the 1990s and early 2000s, the Chinese government’s doping programs were so widespread that they seemed to be operating with the sole purpose of winning medals at any cost. This systematic abuse led to stripped medals and a long-term black mark on their sports programs, with many athletes suffering lasting health consequences.

North Korea, while less documented, has not escaped suspicion. Allegations of state-sponsored doping have hovered over the country, with rumours suggesting a pattern of using performance-enhancing drugs to elevate its athletes on the world stage. Despite the murkiness of the evidence, the association with such practices damages their reputation.

Fast forward to Canada’s present-day debacle: our women’s soccer team, in a bid for an edge over New Zealand, turned to spying—using a drone to capture training sessions. French authorities caught Joseph Lombardi, an unaccredited analyst, and assistant coach Jasmine Mander in the act. They were promptly sent home, and head coach Bev Priestman offered to step down from the opening match, a gesture accepted in an attempt to salvage some semblance of integrity. Yet, the damage was done.

Opinion: Canada’s soccer spying scandal is a humiliating way to kick off Paris 2024

February 27, 2018

The Canadian Olympic Committee’s decision to mandate ethics training for staff following these Games underscores a glaring issue: if we need to be reminded that cheating is wrong, we have a bigger problem. This scandal, involving the unauthorized drone and espionage, not only casts a long shadow over the team’s achievements but also puts Canada in an uncomfortable spotlight, alongside those infamous states known for their ethical breaches.

So, ask yourself, is this the legacy Canada wants to build at Paris 2024? Are we aiming to join the ranks of Russia, China, and North Korea in the annals of disgrace? This isn’t just a minor lapse; it’s a significant blemish on a nation that once prided itself on fairness and sportsmanship.

March 3, 2010

As the Olympic Games unfold, will Canada be remembered for its athletic prowess or for this sordid episode? The hope is that this scandal will be seen as an isolated incident in an otherwise illustrious sporting tradition. However, if this is the new face of Canadian sportsmanship, perhaps our Olympic motto needs a rethink—“Own the Podium by Any Means Necessary” might be closer to the truth than we’d like to admit. (AI)

Reader Comments

Meta Al – What people are saying

The comments react to a controversy involving Team Canada and spying at the Olympics, with many expressing embarrassment, shame, and disappointment. One comment notes that while the behaviour was not ethical, it is a common practice in sports. (Click on the image below to read reactions)


 

 

Saturday December 3, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday December 3, 2022

How Canada can build on World Cup run ahead of 2026 cycle

June 6, 2015

There were still plenty of valuable lessons for Canada despite the losses, though, and Les Rouges can apply those “learnings” – as coach John Herdman refers to them – when the country co-hosts the 2026 World Cup.

The Canadian men’s national team made history, just not enough of it.

As breathtaking as the team’s performances were in various stages, Canada still suffered defeat in all three games. It’s difficult to draw sweeping conclusions based on small sample sizes in tournament settings, let alone in a nation’s first men’s World Cup in 36 years.

Thursday November 24, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday November 24, 2022

How to talk about the World Cup without kicking it off

We are now two days into the most complicated World Cup in living memory. Held at the wrong time of year, in a country drenched in human rights abuses, as a result of widespread corruption, the tournament could very well be overwhelmed by controversy. At the same time, however, it’s the World Cup. Everyone loves the World Cup. So the question is this: exactly how excited are you allowed to be?

The answer is that it depends on who you’re talking to. As a good and normal human being, your role in life is to socially triangulate with those around you, and this means adjusting your excitement levels according to who you happen to be with. Below are the four types of people you will encounter between now and the World Cup final on December 18, and a quick guide on what to say to them.

Your socially conscious friend here knows all about Qatar’s terrible record when it comes to migrant worker deaths and LGBT rights, and the thick vein of corruption running through Fifa. Logically you should not be excited about the World Cup at all around this friend. That said, they are a bit of a buzzkill and you do need to teach them to lighten up.

Do say: “The entire planet should boycott the World Cup this year.”

Don’t say: “Have you seen the mascot, though? So cute!”

Do say: “This World Cup was the result of widespread bribery and corruption on an unprecedented scale.”

Don’t say: “Hey, have you seen my new car? The Qatari government bought it for me.”

Do say: “Fifa is no longer fit for purpose and should be disbanded.”

Don’t say: “But it is fun when someone scores a goal, though, isn’t it?”

Do say: “In a way, the World Cup has helped to amplify Qatar’s human rights abuses in a manner that wouldn’t have happened if they were denied the bid.”

Don’t say: “Hey, they should hold the next one in North Korea.”

Do say: “I am not going to watch a second of the World Cup.”

Don’t say: “Unless England get to the quarter-finals, obvs.” (Continued: The Times (of London)) 

 

Saturday October 29, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Saturday October 29, 2016 'Pretty Good Rich Kids': Reaching the OHL takes more than talent What does it take to make it to the Ontario Hockey League? Skill? Certainly. Speed? Sure. Strength? No question. But it also takes something else Ñ something over and above raw talent and physicality. To make it to the OHL, you also need a winning ticket in the lottery of birth. A year-long Spectator investigation finds a highly significant number of the league's Ontario-raised players are from suburban neighbourhoods where most people are well-educated, earn high incomes and live in expensive homes. The odds of them crossing paths with someone living in poverty are extremely low. For anyone familiar with the extraordinary cost of playing hockey in Ontario Ñ $15,000-or-so annually for an elite AAA player and getting higher Ñ this won't come as a shock. If you want to be the next Sidney Crosby, says Wilfrid Laurier University's William McTeer, "the first question you have to ask is how much money do your parents have and are they prepared to invest in your future as an athlete.Ó But cost isn't the only thing keeping children in Hamilton and across Ontario out of the game. Several factors, including geography, public policy and the funding mechanisms of non-profits, are making it increasingly difficult for low- and middle-income families to access the sport, particularly at competitive levels. "I think it's tragic," says Philip White, a sport sociologist at McMaster University. "You live in a culture where everybody is supposed to have an opportunity to advance and kids are simply shut out.Ó Our analysis is grounded in data. Stick with us while we get the heavy stuff out of the way. (Continued: Hamilton Spectator) http://www.thespec.com/sports-story/6931904--pretty-good-rich-kids-reaching-the-ohl-takes-more-than-talent/ Canada, Ontario,ÊHamilton, hockey, soccer, amateur, sport, professional, money, wealth,

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday October 29, 2016

‘Pretty Good Rich Kids’: Reaching the OHL takes more than talent

What does it take to make it to the Ontario Hockey League?

Skill? Certainly. Speed? Sure. Strength? No question.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator - Wednesday November 28, 2007 Probe into hockey brawl between 8-year-olds A decision on whether to lay a criminal charge in connection with a hockey brawl involving eight-year-olds at a tournament in Guelph, Ont. will likely come on Wednesday, says a police spokesperson.Ê "It's the interaction between the two coaches -- whether or not that was a consensual fight or an assault," Sgt. Cate Welsh of the Guelph Police told CTV.ca on Tuesday.Ê Niagara Falls Thunder coaching staff allegedly spat at a counterpart with the Duffield Devils, Welsh said.Ê But what had everyone talking is the bench-clearing brawl erupting at the game's end on Friday, which involved such young players. Players for both sides belong to Novice AAA teams.Ê "This is a really rare incident," Richard Ropchan, executive director of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association told CTV.ca, adding he can't think of a similar one in his nine years with the OMHA.Ê "Certainly the fact that eight-year-olds are involved -- well, that certainly got my attention."Ê Ropchan added that the brawl "points right to the adults involved. You can't blame the kids for that."Ê Witnesses say there were cheap shots throughout the game, culminating with a fight. (Source: CTV News)Êhttp://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2007/11/26/ontario_leads_in_child_poverty.html Hockey, fighting, contact, brawl, coaches, aggressive, brutality, history, Roman, gladiators, Rome, war, violence, editorial cartoon, 2007

 November 28, 2007

But it also takes something else — something over and above raw talent and physicality. To make it to the OHL, you also need a winning ticket in the lottery of birth.

A year-long Spectator investigation finds a highly significant number of the league’s Ontario-raised players are from suburban neighbourhoods where most people are well-educated, earn high incomes and live in expensive homes.

The odds of them crossing paths with someone living in poverty are extremely low.

For anyone familiar with the extraordinary cost of playing hockey in Ontario — $15,000-or-so annually for an elite AAA player and getting higher — this won’t come as a shock. If you want to be the next Sidney Crosby, says Wilfrid Laurier University’s William McTeer, “the first question you have to ask is how much money do your parents have and are they prepared to invest in your future as an athlete.”

But cost isn’t the only thing keeping children in Hamilton and across Ontario out of the game.

Several factors, including geography, public policy and the funding mechanisms of non-profits, are making it increasingly difficult for low- and middle-income families to access the sport, particularly at competitive levels.

“I think it’s tragic,” says Philip White, a sport sociologist at McMaster University. “You live in a culture where everybody is supposed to have an opportunity to advance and kids are simply shut out.”

Our analysis is grounded in data. Stick with us while we get the heavy stuff out of the way. (Continued: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Saturday June 6, 2015

Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator - Saturday June 6, 2015 FIFA President Victor Montagliani says Canada won World Cup hosting privileges by default With rampant allegations of corruption, fraud and bribery within the FIFA executive ranks, it's unsurprising that Canada Soccer is facing questions about how it won the bid for this year's FIFA Women's World Cup. According to Canada Soccer president Victor Montagliani, the answer is simple: no one else wanted to host the tournament. "With all due respect, we were pretty much the only country that wanted it," he told Rick Cluff on CBC Radio One's The Early Edition. "When we bid for it, there was seven originally. Five dropped off right away and they chose to bid for other World Cups. There was only one other country with us which was Zimbabwe and they pulled out." blatter-sepp-150602-620 Embattled FIFA President Sepp Blatter could still attend the final match of the Women's World Cup in Vancouver, despite his resignation. (Ennio Leanza/Keystone/Associated Press) With 14 arrests of high-ranking officials and the resignation of embattled president Sepp Blatter causing a media firestorm, the women's tournament is at risk of being overshadowed. But, Montagliani says he will welcome Blatter to Vancouver for the final match should he choose to come. "We've been told that he is attending ... it probably will be a media circus, but in the same token you have to respect the fact that he still has the office of the presidency," he said. "He has every right to attend a FIFA event as the president." (Source: CBC News) http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/fifa-women-s-world-cup-in-canada-because-no-one-else-wanted-it-says-canada-soccer-1.3102336 Canada, Interantional, soccer, FIFA, Women, World Cup, football, skunk, scandal, corruption

Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday June 6, 2015

FIFA President Victor Montagliani says Canada won World Cup hosting privileges by default

With rampant allegations of corruption, fraud and bribery within the FIFA executive ranks, it’s unsurprising that Canada Soccer is facing questions about how it won the bid for this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup.

According to Canada Soccer president Victor Montagliani, the answer is simple: no one else wanted to host the tournament.

“With all due respect, we were pretty much the only country that wanted it,” he told Rick Cluff on CBC Radio One’s The Early Edition.

“When we bid for it, there was seven originally. Five dropped off right away and they chose to bid for other World Cups. There was only one other country with us which was Zimbabwe and they pulled out.”
blatter-sepp-150602-620

Embattled FIFA President Sepp Blatter could still attend the final match of the Women’s World Cup in Vancouver, despite his resignation. (Ennio Leanza/Keystone/Associated Press)

With 14 arrests of high-ranking officials and the resignation of embattled president Sepp Blatter causing a media firestorm, the women’s tournament is at risk of being overshadowed. But, Montagliani says he will welcome Blatter to Vancouver for the final match should he choose to come.

“We’ve been told that he is attending … it probably will be a media circus, but in the same token you have to respect the fact that he still has the office of the presidency,” he said.

“He has every right to attend a FIFA event as the president.” (Source: CBC News)

Published in the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, Viking Weekly Review (Alberta), Edmonton Journal, and Corner Brook Newspaper