Even before the Canadian women’s rugby squad launched their medal quest at the Tokyo Olympics, they have already grabbed the headlines and for all the right reasons.

Addressing a virtual press conference on Saturday, the entire team, led by skipper Ghislaine Landry, were prepared to tackle a few important issues before tackling their opponents. She insisted on the four prepared questions to be read in the designated order as they were going to make statements.

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The answers addressed the bullying and harassment claim against their former coach, racial equality and the discovery of the remains of hundreds of Indigenous children in unmarked graves at residential school sites in Canada.

The girls also made sure to don black T-shirts that read “BIPOC Lives Matter” and orange masks reading “Every Child Matters.”

“A year ago, our team would be sitting here solely talking about the game — and the game is important to us and we are ready for that,” said Charity Williams, who went on to make powerful remarks on the importance of representation. “But as we know, we are more than athletes. This is what it looks like when you decolonize your space.”

Williams is one of six returning members of the bronze-medal-winning Canadian squad from Rio 2016, which was a watershed moment for female sport in Canada as rugby sevens made its Olympic debut.

“I was the first Black woman to represent our team in the 2016 Olympics, and that was a huge honour,” said Williams, during the media conference in Tokyo.

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Following the death of George Floyd last year, she and the rest of the Canadian rugby team helped organise the Black Lives Matter rallies in Centennial Square.

Williams said the standing with the Canadian team filled with “such strong BIPOC people” makes her proud. BIPOC is an abbreviation for Black, Indigenous and other people of colour. She further went on to add, “This past year, this team has taken steps back to unlearn and relearn what it means to be allies.”

Lauding the current batch of players, Williams said: “I’ve never felt like there is a true place for me here. But sitting here today, I can say I trust my teammates are open to listening and learning.”

Earlier in the year, a revolt by the Canadian women’s team players led to the departure of head coach John Tait of Mill Bay, following allegations of bullying against him. Tait guided Canada to the podium at Rio.

The players were not satisfied by the results of an independent investigation commissioned by Rugby Canada that cleared Tait after looking into their complaints.

The team also touched on another major issue during the conference.

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Asked what does it mean to be representing Canada in the Tokyo Olympics, Player Kayla Moleschi answered: “With the 1,794 and counting bodies of Indigenous children being recovered from residential schools, this question needs to be what every Canadian is asking themselves. We are all a part of colonialism. We cannot reconcile with Indigenous communities without acknowledging the truth and realities. Our team acknowledges and stands in solidarity. We will continue to amplify the truth and fight to decolonize all spaces.”

Finally, after addressing the social topics, the team decided to talk about their preparation over the past 12 months. They said the team are “100 percent ready to compete for the gold medal.” 

World third-ranked Canada starts their Tokyo Olympics campaign on Wednesday against Brazil in Tokyo.