Canadian swimmer says she was drugged after championships



Warning: Some may find details in this story disturbing.

A Canadian swimmer says she was injured and has no memory of what happened on the final night of the World Aquatics Championships in Budapest last weekend and believes she was drugged.

Mary-Sophie Harvey finished eighth in the 200m individual medley and helped Team Canada win silver in the 4x200m freestyle relay. She said in an Instagram post that she and her teammates went out for drinks after the competition to celebrate.

However, the 22-year-old Montreal native said there was a “four to six hour window” that night when she couldn’t remember anything. When she returned home, she found a dozen bruises all over her body, while doctors told her she had a sprained rib and a minor concussion.

Harvey spoke to CTV National News Quebec Bureau Chief Genevieve Beauchemin about the incident, her attempts to enlist support, and the reactions she’s received from fans who have shared similar stories. Below is a full transcript of that conversation, edited for length and clarity.


Mary Sophie Harvey: After the World Championships I wanted to celebrate with all the swimmers. So like every team we all went to a restaurant to celebrate the good meeting we had. But at the same time I was still aware that another meeting was coming up and I still wanted to do well. So I still had that in the back of my mind. I tried to keep an eye on the whole situation. I wanted to have fun and still be okay.

Anyway, I was partying with my friends and things weren’t right to a point. And I remember having about four drinks throughout the night. And the next thing I remember was waking up with our team doctor and our team manager next to me by my bed. I was really worried when I woke up because I was lucid. I didn’t know what happened. They all looked worried and sort of explained to me what had happened. And in that moment, I felt so ashamed and so embarrassed because… they were telling me a story where I was the main character, but it didn’t feel like I was in it.

They told me stuff and tried to pick up the pieces and tell me the story bit by bit. And I thought – I don’t know, it’s just completely empty. And they told me who brought me back, so of course I called them afterwards to shed some light if they can help me figure out what happened. And it helped a little. I can’t keep it together all night. I wish I could. But there were a lot of people so it was easy to go anywhere or whatever.

I know a friend of mine – she found me on the street and I have no memory of how I got there. She told me that I kept telling her not to leave me alone, ‘Stay with me. Please don’t leave me alone.’ And I kept telling her that, and she said, ‘I’m not going to leave you alone.’ And she brought two other guys to help me. And I don’t know when, but eventually I lost consciousness and they had to carry me to my room.

I don’t know how many hours later, but I woke up in my right mind.


Genevieve Beauchemin: They talk about something like a four to six hour period where you’re completely – it’s lost in your head.


Harvey: Yes, it’s a weird feeling. I can’t say I’ve ever experienced that. It’s just so scary. I’ve tried so hard to have memories of that night but it’s just completely blank. And the next morning when I woke up I wasn’t really thinking much about the whole thing. I was just embarrassed.

I got on the plane right after waking up. Packed my suitcase, took the plane, traveled home the whole day. It wasn’t until I got home to my apartment after the day of travel and undressed to shower that I noticed all the bruises I had all over my body. And it kind of made me realize that this wasn’t okay and what happened wasn’t okay. And that’s when I started to feel kind of a little afraid of the “what if?”


Beauchemin: I’m sure you mean what if you were attacked? What questions went through your mind?


Harvey: Yes, exactly. They told me that I was with people most of the time, which I’m grateful for, because who knows what would have happened if I’d been alone? But I’m still scared of some of the answers I don’t have and nobody has. How did I get on the road? It’s just these parts that are really scary. And some of the bruises, their placement. It’s just… it was scary.


Beauchemin: When did you come to the conclusion that you were drugged? And do you understand how it happened or when it might have happened?


Harvey: The thing about it – it’s such a common thing, which is sad to say. It’s such a common thing and it happens to so many people. After posting… I’ve received so many messages from girls, women and men sharing their stories and telling me they felt the exact same thing. It shouldn’t be like that. Like, it should not be normalized. And I was like I still had it all, I don’t hear it at all. And I’ve been trying to research it and have stats on it and have resources on it. We don’t have any, or we don’t have enough.

Because after I got home… I went to practice the next morning and I wasn’t feeling really good. And I went on to practice and then I called my friend who knew about the situation and I knew her mother was a doctor. So I called her and didn’t know what to do. What should I do? I was still a bit confused and they kind of reassured me that it wasn’t my fault because I felt like it was. They urged me to call this specialized hotline in Montreal, which I did. And that’s actually one of the other reasons I posted this. I was shocked at the lack of resources we have in this situation.

Basically I called the line and it wasn’t really helpful. I was a bit lost as to what to do. I’ve tried to tell my story, but it’s hard to tell stories like this because it’s fragmentary and you’re trying to navigate through it, but it’s just so confusing. I ended up asking her what should I do? ‘Cause I’m lost She told me that there are only two places in Montreal that can handle situations like this. There is a hospital where you can go to the emergency room, but she said she wouldn’t recommend it.

And there is a clinic for that. I asked them if they would be happy to give me their number or something I can reach (the clinic). And after the call I called the clinic and it was closed and it was around nine o’clock. It was closed. I left my details and it took them two days to reply. For someone who knows 100 percent that they have been sexually abused, I can’t even imagine waiting two days. It’s not okay. And it just made me sad, but at the same time I think we have to do better. We have to get better because this situation happens so often.


Beauchemin: You spoke of the weakness of not feeling like yourself. How do you feel now?

Harvey: I’m feeling a little better. I think last week’s Mary would not have been able to speak to the media and post what I posted yesterday. I think I’m getting through this day by day. Surprisingly, swimming helps. It was therapeutic in a way, like unplugging everything and just doing my thing. I think it takes time.

So many people have reached out to me, right? And it just broke my heart because their stories, they were still ashamed after eight years of their incident and stuff like that. And I kept telling them, ‘It’s not your fault, you didn’t ask for it and you shouldn’t be ashamed of it.’ And it took me a while to realize that I should listen to what I’m telling them, that I shouldn’t be ashamed of what happened and that I have to be okay with it.


Beauchemin: You speak with such courage and it’s great to hear you share your story because the way you say it happens all too often. What message would you like to convey to young women, young men? What is that? What’s the message you want people to know?


Harvey: I think you should be careful. I think we should talk about it a little more, even at school. It sounds crazy. But just tell people it can happen to anyone. I thought I was safe because I was with some similar friends and I was like, ‘Oh, it’s okay, this isn’t going to happen to me because I’m surrounded by people I know.’ But it happened and it’s scary.

If my story can just help one person be more careful or someone who is thinking about it…then I’m glad I shared it because people need to know it’s not okay.


Beauchemin: Do you remember anything suspicious? Can you think of anything?


Harvey: That’s it. I know I’ve had four drinks. The thing is – probably what happened was that I wasn’t holding my drink the whole time. I also danced. So it was on a table. So that’s my take on it. That’s something I can think of because I don’t know what else.


Beauchemin: I think that’s the message to people. They think they can see it, but it happens.


Harvey: It’s happening and you don’t even realize it and it’s about six hours later. It’s not a good feeling and I wish it hadn’t happened so often, honestly


Beauchemin: The fact that people look up to athletes of your caliber and you, and I think the fact that you’re speaking up – what do you hope for now? That things can change?


Harvey: Yes, I really hope so. I hope that my story can in some way help prevent some events in the future. I hope, I hope we get more resources. I hope the victims don’t feel ashamed like a lot of people are doing right now. Because we shouldn’t be ashamed of something we didn’t ask for.