Photo courtesy: Football Canada
The Canadian senior women’s flag football team has booked their ticket to the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
The team, which is coached by Rachel Lessard, officially qualified with an upset of No. 1-ranked Mexico in the semi-finals of the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Flag Football World Championships on Saturday in Düsseldorf, Germany. Team captain Caroline Moquin-Joubert caught two touchdown passes, and Catherine Gaumont intercepted two passes as they rolled to a 20-6 victory.
Canada entered the tournament as the fourth-ranked team in the world. They went undefeated in the group stage, securing victories over No. 5 Japan, No. 12 Panama, and No. 15 Brazil, before advancing to the quarterfinals against No. 6 Austria on Saturday morning. That proved to be a 40-12 romp for the women wearing the maple leaf, as Marianne Quirion led the way with two touchdowns.
By virtue of their victory, Canada advances to the gold medal game on Sunday, where they will face the second-ranked United States. However, the result of that game will have no bearing on their Olympic dream, as the top two finishers in the World Championship, other than the U.S., automatically qualify for LA 2028. With no less than a silver medal in their grasp and the only pre-qualified nation as their opponent, the Canadian women have secured their berth.
Flag football is making its Olympic debut in Los Angeles. Further teams will need to earn their way to qualification by way of a Q-Series event to take place in Montreal, but Canada will not need to face the pressure on home soil.
The Canadian men will also have a chance to qualify on Saturday or Sunday, pending their result against Italy in the semi-finals.
The women’s gold medal game will take place on Sunday, August 16, at 10:30 a.m. EDT. Information on how to watch the game can be found by clicking here.
