The Canadian women may have taken things a little too far.
The International Olympic Committee will launch an investigation the antics of several players on the Canadian women’s hockey team players who took part in a gold medal celebration on Thursday that included chugging beer and smoking cigars right out on the Vancouver ice.
Among the players consuming alcohol was 18-year-old Marie-Philip Poulin. The legal drinking age in British Columbia is 19.
Players stayed on the ice for over an hour following the awards ceremony to celebrate. The arena was empty at that point, except for media and arena staff.
Gilbert Felli, the IOC’s executive director of the Olympic Games, was quoted as saying that drinking in public was “not what we want to see” from Olympic athletes. Officials will investigate the matter and discuss it with the International Hockey Federation and Canadian Olympic Committee.
Steve Keough, a spokesman for the Canadian Olympic Committee, told the Associated Press, “We condone celebrations. We don’t condone actions of irresponsibility. I think Canadians understand it’s quite an emotional moment for our team. It was not our intention to go against any IOC protocols.”
See more photos of the celebration below (click to enlarge):
More here: Winter Olympics
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