'We're not cheaters': Defiant Canada stays alive with dramatic Olympic win
Canada's defense of its Olympic gold medal in women's soccer was seconds away from ending until defender Vanessa Gilles scored a dramatic winner in the 12th minute of stoppage time to defeat host nation France 2-1 and keep the team's chances of reaching the knockout stage alive.
The scandal-hit Olympic champion, docked six points by FIFA for the drone-spying debacle that has rocked the squad at the Paris Olympics and resulted in the suspension of coach Bev Priestman, would have been mathematically eliminated from contention for the quarterfinals with anything other than a victory Sunday.
That seemed to be the most likely outcome when Marie-Antoinette Katoto opened the scoring for France, the world's second-ranked side, in the 42nd minute in Saint-Etienne.
But the Canadian players, weathering a storm not of their own making over the past week, showed resilience in the second half, and captain Jessie Fleming netted the equalizer in the 58th minute from close range, poking the ball into an open goal after it was spilled by French goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin.
Canada, knowing it needed another goal, pushed forward as the seconds ticked away and the match entered 13 minutes of second-half stoppage time. Kailen Sheridan made a point-blank save deep into added time to keep the contest level, and Gilles, playing as a makeshift center-forward in the closing minutes, delivered the winner off a rebound in the final seconds, showing off the finishing skills of a striker with a low shot that smacked the post and crossed the line, setting off Canadian celebrations on the pitch and bench.
"We've been crying," Gilles said in an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) after the match. "What's given us energy is each other, our determination, our pride to prove people wrong, our pride to represent this country when all this shit is coming out about our values and our representation as Canadians."
She added: "We're not cheaters. We're damn good players, we're a damn good team, we're a damn good group, and we proved that today."
Canada, now on zero points after the deduction, must win its final Group A match against Colombia on Wednesday to reach the quarterfinals and continue defending the gold medal captured in Tokyo in 2021.
The Canadians could yet bring an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and try to have the points penalty reduced or overturned entirely. It's unclear if Canada will take that step. An appeal was being considered after FIFA announced its sanctions.
"I think it has brought us closer," team captain Fleming said of the challenges faced by the squad in recent days, according to the CBC. "It feels like us against the world right now. All of our focus has just been on each other because that's all we have to lean on right now."
Canada was once again led Sunday by acting head coach Andy Spence after Priestman, along with two staff members, were sent home from the Olympics and subsequently suspended for one year by FIFA as punishment in the spying case.
Priestman, in a statement released through her lawyers ahead of Sunday's match, said she was "absolutely heartbroken" for the players, and apologized to the team and country for the scandal.