Canada’s soccer team scored a devastating loss Saturday afternoon at the Paris Olympics. Playing against all odds to get into the quarterfinals of the tournament, the team lost to Germany in penalties and dashed any hope for a medal.
It was a nail biter game, especially in the fallout from the drone spying scandal, which many felt was the beginning of the end for a medal.
On Wednesday, a sports arbitration court dismissed Canada’s appeal of a six-point penalty against its Olympic women’s soccer team, a report by the FIFA appeals committee suggesting drone spying may be embedded in the culture of the women’s national team.
For one group of fans, it was still great to support the team’s Olympic journey.
“It’s just amazing and they’ve come through so much and accomplished so much,” said Lynn Woods, who travelled from Ajax to watch the game in Ottawa with a group of friends. “We just can’t believe that they’re here today playing this game.”
“I’m very upset how they treated the Canadian team with this spying and all the other teams do it and they get away with it,” said Les Johnson, who is also from Ajax and travelling in the same group for the long weekend. “Canada has to, you know, pay the penalty, which I think is wrong.”
Although the outcome wasn’t what fans wanted, the support in red and white was very clear from Canada’s Capital.