New Jersey Devils defenceman Cal Foote, the son of Vancouver Canucks assistant coach Adam Foote, is among four players charged with sexual assault of a woman stemming from an alleged incident during a Hockey Canada event in London, Ont., in June 2018.
Sports
Canucks: Cal Foote, son of Vancouver assistant coach, among World Junior players charged with sexual assault
Four members of Canada’s 2018 world junior team have been charged with sexual assault, which has put hockey’s culture back under the microscope.
Dillon Dube of the Calgary Flames, Carter Hart of the Philadelphia Flyers and Michael McLeod of the Devils have also been charged, according to their lawyers, while former Ottawa Senators forward Alex Formenton, who was playing in Switzerland, reported to London police on Sunday to be charged.
More details are expected at a London Police Service press conference Monday.
The accused players were members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior Hockey Championship entry at Buffalo that captured gold with a 3-1 victory over Sweden, which is overshadowed by the alleged incident that has again placed hockey’s culture under the microscope.
Foote’s lawyer, Julianna Greenspan, responded with a statement:
“I can confirm that my client was charged with sexual assault. Cal is innocent of the charge and will defend himself to clear his name. What is most critical at this time is the presumption of innocence, and the right to a fair trial, that everyone in Canada is entitled to.”
Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford is empathetic as Adam Foote processes the charge facing his son.
“At this point, we just support him through a difficult time, but we really don’t have a comment on the bigger situation,” said Rutherford.
Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet regards Adam Foote as a close friend and coaching confidant.
“He’s standing tall — I can’t say anything more than that — and he’s fine. He’s good,” Tocchet said Jan. 24 when Cal Foote was requested to report to London police.
Former Canucks goaltender Corey Hirsch played for the Kamloops Blazers — who captured the 1992 Memorial Cup in Seattle — in the hockey-mad sporting city and was schooled in proper conduct to represent the team and the city.
Hirsch, 51, was appointed to Hockey Canada’s board of directors in November to help the troubled organization regain respect, credibility and wellness.
Hirsch was never naive to assume that 16-year-old players riding on a bus with 20-year-olds for eight or nine hours to the next Western Hockey League destination aren’t affected by what veteran players have experienced on and off the ice.
“In hockey, I always go back to this: You have 16- and 17-year-olds on a bus with 18-,19- and 20-year-olds. The older players are college students and adults and experimenting with whatever. Younger players are listening to college-age people talk about sex and life,” he said.
“It can be: This is what it takes to be a man … The things I saw on a bus. In Kamloops, we were good people. We were monitored … but I saw stuff that I shouldn’t have seen, or heard, or learned stuff that I shouldn’t have learned.
“What do 18-year-olds know about love, relationships and sex? They know nothing. And they’re teaching 16- and 17-year-olds. They’ve learned what they’ve learned and the culture passes it on. It could be a kid coming from not a great home, or whatever, and looking for something. Scott Niedermayer (former Blazer) would never be like this.
How anyone can conclude that a culture of deplorable deportment is somehow valid — as opposed to proper conduct as a valued teammate and citizen — simply stuns Hirsch. He’s struggled with mental health issues, including an acute obsessive-compulsion disorder, but this is different.
“This (alleged incident) isn’t a one-off,” stressed Hirsch. “This is junior hockey and a life-in-general thing. Have a sexual-assault victim come in and talk to these hockey kids and let them know exactly what it is, what it has done to them as a human being. That should be mandatory training.
“It’s one thing to have a psychiatrist come in and say: ‘This is what it does to people.’ Bring in a victim. Then we’ll see change.”
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After finishing fourth in a deep Copa America run, coach Jesse Marsch and the 40th-ranked Canadian men now get to test themselves against the three top-ranked teams in CONCACAF.
The run of friendlies starts Saturday against the 16th-ranked U.S. in Kansas City, a matchup the Canadians go into with a “bit of swagger,” according to Marsch.
“You see that they’ve grown. There’s more self-confidence,” Marsch said in a virtual availability Friday. “That they believe in themselves. They believe in the process that’s been created. They’re all committed, all the way.
“It’s a great team to work with, in terms of the mentality, the work ethic, the commitment to play for the national team. It’s a real special group. And it gives us the opportunity and optimism that we can continue to get better.”
After the Americans, Canada faces No. 17 Mexico on Tuesday in Arlington, Texas, before hosting No. 35 Panama on Oct. 15 at Toronto’s BMO Field.
And while all three games are friendlies, it’s a chance to make a mark.
“The U.S. has established itself as the best team in the region,” said Marsch, a former U.S. international. “Even though Canada won the (CONCACAF) qualifying group for (the 2022) World Cup, I still think that everyone knows that with the resources, with the size of the country, with the establishment of what the sport has been in the United States, that this is a big measuring stick for us.”
Saturday marks Canada’s first action since a penalty shootout loss to No. 11 Uruguay in the July 13 third-place game at Copa America.
Canada is 1-3-4 — albeit against elite opposition, including a pair of 2-0 losses to top-ranked Argentina — since Marsch took the reins, with one of those ties turning into the shootout loss to Uruguay and another into a shootout win over No. 37 Venezuela in the Copa quarterfinal.
The two North American rivals last met in July 2023 when the U.S., under former coach Gregg Berhalter, defeated Canada in a penalty shootout in Cincinnati after the Gold Cup quarterfinal finished knotted at 2-2. The previous month, the U.S. blanked Canada and then-coach John Herdman 2-0 in the CONCACAF Nations League final in Las Vegas.
The U.S. are currently led by assistant coach Mikey Varas with former Tottenham and Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino reportedly the favourite to become the permanent replacement for Berhalter, who was fired July 10 after the Americans failed to survive the Copa America group stage.
“I think Canada had a good run in Copa America and we had a disappointing run,” Varas said Friday. “And that’s pretty much where it’s left for me.
“We know that we’re showing up here with the objective of showing who we are. We want to show ourselves who we are but show everybody else who we are. And that’s all we’ve really been focused on.”
The U.S. goes into Saturday’s game with a 17-10-13 record against Canada.
The Canadian men’s last win over the U.S. was in January 2022, a 2-0 decision in World Cup qualifying play in Hamilton. Their last victory over the Americans on U.S. soil was in July 1957, a 3-2 World Cup qualifying victory in St. Louis.
“I don’t think it’s really important,” Canada captain Alphonso Davies said of that history. “Every single game that we play, we want to win. Obviously playing the U.S. in the U.S. is a big game. Every time Canada plays the U.S., a lot of people tune in.”
Watching the U.S. lift the Nations League trophy after beating Canada last year in Las Vegas is motivation enough “to go out there and try and do something that hasn’t been done in a long time,” he added.
“I think we’re ready for it. And we’re prepared for the occasion.”
The Americans go into Saturday’s contest with an 8-0-2 record at Children’s Mercy Park, where they have outscored their opposition 20-2.
Marsch’s squad includes uncapped midfielders Niko Sigur (Hadjuk Split, Croatia) and Nathan Saliba (CF Montreal) and forward Stephen Afrifa(Sporting Kansas City).
Sigur, born in Burnaby, B.C., with parents of Croatian descent, represented Croatia at youth level but has switched international allegiance to Canada. The Toronto-born Afrifa was also eligible for Ghana.
The 20-year-old Salibaand 21-year-old Columbus forward Jacen Russell-Rowe have come in for the injured Sam Adekugbe and Theo Bair. York United assistant coach Mauro Eustaquio, the older bother of vice-captain Stephen Eustaquio, has been added to Marsch’s coaching staff for the September window.
The U.S. brought in Chivas Guadalajara midfielder Cade Cowell to replace the injured Gio Reyna. The American roster includes uncapped defender Marlon Fossey (Standard Liege, Belgium) and goalkeeper Diego Kochen (FC Barcelona B).
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Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024
Veteran forward Tyson Beukeboom, who won a record 68th cap for Canada in May, leads coach Kevin Rouet’s 35-player training squad ahead of the WXV women’s rugby tournament that kicks off later this month.
Rouet has also called in seven members of Canada’s silver medal-winning sevens squad from the Paris Olympics: Olivia Apps, Caroline Crossley, Alysha Corrigan, Chloe Daniels, Fancy Bermudez, Florence Symonds and Taylor Perry.
Third-ranked Canada faces No. 4 France, No. 10 Ireland and No. 1 England in the elite division of the three-tiered WXV tournament that runs Sept. 29 to Oct. 12 in Vancouver and Langley, B.C. No. 2 New Zealand and the seventh-ranked U.S. make up the six-team WVX 1 field.
WXV 1 features the top three teams from both the Pacific Four Series and Women’s Six Nations. Canada finished runner-up to England in last year’s inaugural WXV 1 in New Zealand.
The Canadians are coming off a historic win over New Zealand in May in Christchurch, dispatching the reigning World Cup champion 22-19 to win the Pacific Four Series. The Canadian women had lost all 17 previous meetings with the Black Ferns, with 10 of those defeats by 27 points or more.
Beukeboom won her 68th cap in the New Zealand victory, surpassing Gillian Florence on Canada’s all-time caps list.
The Canadian players open camp Saturday in Langford, B.C., and are scheduled to leave for Vancouver on Sept. 21 ahead of their Sept. 29 tournament opener against France at B.C. Place Stadium.
“The players and staff are all excited to be back together again after a very exciting spring and summer for women’s rugby in Canada,” Rouet, who will name his final squad prior to the tournament, said in a statement. “We have a strong group of players coming into camp to prepare for WXV 1.
“We have seen significant growth and development in the squad through our recent success at the Pacific Four Series and the Olympics in Paris with many of the players also continuing to play at a high level both internationally and in Canada. WXV 1 represents the next step in our journey as we look forward to the 2025 Rugby World Cup.”
Twenty-five of the players invited to camp were part of Pacific Four Series squad that also registered wins over No 5 Australia and the seventh-ranked U.S.
Gabrielle Senft, Fabiola Forteza and Justine Pelletier join the Canada squad after helping Stade Bordelais to the French club title in June.
Veterans Karen Paquin and Brianna Miller return for the first time since the 2021 World Cup after playing in this summer’s Quebec Ontario Rugby Championship.
But star forward Sophie de Goede, Canada’s captain, remains sidelined as she recovers from knee surgery,
The second-tier WXV 2 and third-tier WXV 3 are slated to run Sept. 27 to Oct. 12, in South Africa and Dubai, respectively.
WXV 2 features Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales while WXV 3 is made up of Fiji, Hong Kong, Madagascar, the Netherlands, Samoa and Spain.
The tournament has 2025 World Cup qualification implications, although Canada, New Zealand and France, like host England, had already qualified by virtue of reaching the semifinals of the last tournament.
Ireland, South Africa, the U.S., Japan, Fiji and Brazil have also booked their ticket, with the final six berths going to the highest-finishing WXV teams who have not yet qualified through regional tournaments.
WXV 1 SCHEDULE(All times ET)
Sept. 29, at B.C. Place Stadium, Vancouver
U.S. vs. England, 3:30 p.m.
Canada vs. France, 6:45 p.m.,
New Zealand vs. Ireland, 10 p.m.
Oct. 5, at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, Langley, B.C.
U.S. vs. France, 3:30 p.m.
Canada vs. Ireland, 6:35 p.m.
Oct. 6, at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, Langley, B.C.
New Zealand vs. England, 4 p.m. ET
Oct. 11, at B.C. Place Stadium, Vancouver
U.S. vs. Ireland, 3:30 p.m.
Oct. 12, at B.C. Place Stadium, Vancouver
New Zealand vs. France, 6:45 p.m.
Canada vs. England, 10 p.m.
Canada’s Women’s Rugby WXV Camp Squad
Forwards
Abby Duguid, Edmonton, Loughborough Lightning (England); Alexandria Ellis, Ottawa, Stade Francais (France); Brittany Kassil, Guelph, Ont., Guelph RFC; Caroline Crossley, Victoria, Castaway Wanderers; Courtney Holtkamp, Rimbey, Alta., Red Deer Titans Rugby; DaLeaka Menin, Vulcan, Alta., Exeter Chiefs (England); Emily Tuttosi, Souris, Man., Exeter Chiefs (England); Fabiola Forteza, Quebec City, Stade Bordelais (France); Gabrielle Senft, Regina, Stade Bordelais (France); Gillian Boag, Calgary, Capilano RFC; Julia Omokhuale, Calgary, Leicester Tigers (England); Karen Paquin, Quebec City, Quebec East; Laetitia Royer, Loretteville, Que., ASM Romagnat (France); Maya Montiel, Dieppe, N.B., Saracens (England); McKinley Hunt, King City, Ont., Saracens (England); Mikiela Nelson, North Vancouver, Exeter Chiefs (England); Pamphinette Buisa, Gatineau, Que., Ottawa Irish; Rori Wood, Sooke, B.C., BC Blue; Sara Cline, Edmonton, Western Force (Australia); Tyson Beukeboom, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England).
Backs
Alexandra Tessier, Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, Que., Exeter Chiefs (England); Alysha Corrigan, Charlottetown, P.E.I., CRFC; Brianna Miller, Pointe-Claire, Que., Quebec West; Claire Gallagher, Caledon, Ont., Leicester Tigers (England); Chloe Daniels, Sutton, Ont., Queen’s University; Fancy Bermudez, Edmonton, Westshore RFC; Florence Symonds, Vancouver, UBC; Julia Schell, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Pelletier, Riviere-du-Loup, Que., Stade Bordelais (France); Mahalia Robinson, Fulford, Que., Town of Mount Royal RFC; Olivia Apps, Lindsay, Ont., Lindsay RFC; Paige Farries, Red Deer, Alta., Saracens (England); Sara Kaljuvee, Ajax, Ont., UBC; Shoshanah Seumanutafa, White Rock, B.C., Chiefs Manawa (New Zealand); Taylor Perry, Oakville, Ont., Exeter Chiefs (England).
—
Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024
PARIS – Canadian discus thrower Jesse Zesseu has won a silver medal at the Paralympic Games.
The 25-year-old from Toronto reached the podium in his Paralympic debut with a throw of 53.24 metres.
He was just over four metres shy of the winner from Uzbekistan.
Zesseu competes in the men’s F37 classification.
Mild cerebral palsy caused by a stroke at birth limits function on the right side of his body.
Zesseu came to para sport as an adult. He says he was working for Cerebral Palsy Ontario when he was told he should investigate his eligibility to pursue Paralympic sport.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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