Aussie Olympian arrested in Paris cocaine bust

Australia brought their gold medal count up to 17 on Wednesday. This amount ties the nation’s all-time record. However, the biggest Australia news in Paris was not about the gold medals. Instead, people are talking about a hockey player who was arrested for buying cocaine.

Tom Craig arrested for cocaine purchase 

While athletes like skateboarder Keegan Palmer and sailor Matt Wearn were winning gold on Wednesday, hockey player Tom Craig was getting arrested for buying cocaine.  
 
The Australian Olympic Committee revealed this news early on Thursday morning. However, they did not name the player involved.  
 
“The Australian Olympic Committee has confirmed an Australian hockey team member is in custody after being arrested in Paris on August 6th. No charges have been laid,” the AOC told the Herald Sun.  
 
According to Reuters, who revealed the identity of who was arrested, Craig was spotted by Paris police buying cocaine on Wednesday night.  
 
The Paris prosecutor's office confirmed this report, saying “Police officers who witnessed a cocaine transaction at the foot of a building in the ninth arrondissement (of Paris), on the night of August 6 to 7, arrested the seller, born in December 2006, and the buyer, born in September 1995 in Australia.” 
 
According to Dominic Sullivan, a spokesperson for Team Australia, Paris police issued Craig with a warning and released him shortly after his arrest. Other reports claim that Craig may have had to pay a small fine.  

Hockey star apologises 

Tom Craig is a key player for the Australian hockey team. He has played over 100 matches and scored more than 30 goals for the national hockey team. He won silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Given his experience, people were stunned to see him arrested in Paris.  
 
To his credit, Craig apologised immediately after being arrested.  
 
“I'd firstly like to apologise for what has occurred in the last 24 hours. I made a terrible mistake. I take full responsibility for my actions,” Craig said as he left the police station.  
 
“My actions are my own and in no way, reflect the values of my family, my teammates, my friends, my sport, and the Australian Olympic team. I've embarrassed you all. I'm truly sorry,” he continued.  

Australia hockey disaster 

As bad as the arrest is for Australia and Tom Craig’s image internationally, it was even worse for the hockey program specifically. Australia’s men’s hockey team were one of the big betting sites favourites heading into Paris 2024.  
 
The consensus online betting odds had Australia as third best to win with $4.50 odds. This was just behind outright favourites Belgium ($3.90) and level with hockey powerhouses the Netherlands.  

Australia failed to live up to their high expectations. The men’s hockey team were knocked out by the Netherlands in the quarter-finals by a score of 2-0. After that win, the Dutch advanced past Spain and will play Germany in the gold medal match on Thursday.