Canada beats France to stay alive a Paris Olympics
The Canadian women's team pulled off a dramatic win over France on Sunday to keep its Olympic hopes alive.
- Canada 2 (Fleming 58’; Gilles 90'+12'), France 1 (Katoto 42’)
- Les Rouges earn their sixth win in 18 all-time games against the French
- Canadians were docked 6 points, Priestman banned for 1 year by FIFA
In the ultimate display of heart and grit, the Canadian women's team showed on Sunday they're not going to leave the Paris Olympics quietly or without a fight.
Canada came from behind to earn a dramatic 2-1 win vs. France at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Étienne, a result that helped it stave off elimination and keeps its hopes alive of repeating as Olympic champions.
Vanessa Gilles scored on a rebound attempt that hit the near post and tucked inside the net deep into injury time to secure a massive three points for Canada who was facing a must-win situation and playing with the weight of the world on its shoulders after a tumultuous few days that has rocked Canadian soccer to its very core.
On Saturday, FIFA docked six points from the Canadian women's team at the Paris Olympics, fined Canada Soccer about $313,000 and banned coach Bev Priestman and two members of her staff — Joseph Lombardi and Jasmine Mander — for one year each for their roles in the spying scandal. That means Canada’s opening win over New Zealand was wiped off the board.
