Three years ago, the Canadian women’s soccer team was putting the world on notice at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, en route to winning the gold medal.
Led by four stops on six shots from goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé, Canada won an epic shootout in the gold medal match against Sweden to be crowned Olympic champions. It instantly became an iconic Olympic moment, with Labbé lauded for her impressive goalkeeping and apparent mind games by smiling at her opponents throughout the shootout.
But with the current drone spying scandal engulfing the Canadian team at this year’s Games, which resulted in the removal of two staff members as well as head coach Bev Priestman for the remainder of the Olympics, questions have been raised about how far back the country’s use of the espionage tactics have been going on.
An article from TSN’s Rick Westhead published on Thursday suggested that drone tactics have been used for several years in both the men’s and women’s programs.
Labbé took to social media today to share her side of the story about the iconic shootout in Tokyo.
if anyone wants to speak about pks. i studied HARD the night before every match. Watched video of players taking pks in national team and club games. Made my own educated guesses based on that info. NO DRONE FOOTAGE was watched. Do not confuse great goalkeeping with cheating.
— Stephanie Labbé (@stephlabbe1) July 26, 2024
“If anyone wants to speak about [penalty kicks], I studied HARD the night before every match,” Labbé posted on X. “Watched video of players taking [penalties] in national team and club games. Made my own educated guesses based on that info. NO DRONE FOOTAGE was watched. Do not confuse great goalkeeping with cheating.”
Labbé retired from professional soccer and the Canadian national team in 2022. She currently holds a series of roles focused on developing the game, including general manager of women’s soccer with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
Without Priestman on the touchline, Canada beat New Zealand by a 2-1 score in their opening match this year. Canada’s next match is against the Olympic hosts, France, on Sunday, July 28 at 3 pm ET/noon PT.
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