It was only four seconds and a tenth of a point, but it was enough to deprive Jordan Chiles of her bronze medal. A decision that left her speechless.
“I have no words,” Chiles told X on Thursday. “This decision feels unjust and comes as a heavy blow, not only to me, but to everyone who has supported my journey.”
Chiles’ post on She previously posted twice in the days following the International Olympic Committee’s decision to re-award the bronze, once with four broken heart emojis and another that read: “I’m taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you.”
A week later, Chiles wrote that she is “now facing one of the most challenging moments of my career. … I will approach this challenge as I have done others – and do everything in my power to ensure that justice is done.”
— Jordan Chiles (@ChilesJordan) August 15, 2024
The controversy stems from the women’s gymnastics floor final at the Bercy Arena in Paris on August 5. Chiles, the last of the nine gymnasts to perform, earned an initial score of 13.666, placing her fifth behind Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade (gold medalist), the American. Simone Biles (silver medalist) and Romania’s Ana Bărbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who each scored a 13.700. (Bărbosu was ahead of Maneca-Voinea because she had a higher execution score, meaning the judges thought she had a cleaner routine.)
Following Chiles’ routine, her coach Cecile Landi submitted an inquiry, which the judges accepted, thus increasing Chiles’ score to 13.766, bumping her into the bronze position. The Romanian Gymnastics Federation appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, disputing the timeliness of Chiles’ investigation and saying it was submitted four seconds after the allotted minute. (Gymnasts before Chiles had from the time their score appeared on the board until the start of the next gymnast’s routine – usually a few minutes – to make an investigation. But since Chiles was the last gymnast who performed, the rule allowed USA Gymnastics only one minute to submit a question.)
CAS agreed that Chiles’ survey was submitted too late and that Chiles’ initial score of 13.666 should be reinstated. However, in its full report released on Thursday, CAS also said it would award Chiles, Bărbosu and Maneca-Voinea all bronze medals if it had its way, saying the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) did not control the timing of the competition has followed. whether guidelines have been put in place to ensure the correct protocol was followed.
“Had the panel been able to apply fair principles, it would certainly have awarded a bronze medal to all three gymnasts, given their performance, good faith and the injustice and pain to which they have been subjected, in circumstances where the FIG did not provide any mechanism or arrangement to implement the one-minute rule,” the court said.
The FIG changed the results to reflect the CAS ruling and gave the IOC the final decision on who would be awarded the bronze. The IOC then said it would award the bronze medal to Bărbosu and that it was in contact with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee “about the return of the bronze medal (Chiles).
GO DEEPER
Gymnastics officials let Chiles and others down, but were unwilling to award three bronze medals
The details from CAS on Wednesday roundly blamed FIG for the problems that arose during one of the most dramatic moments of the Paris Games. The panel said it was limited in its assessment, leading to heartbreak for the athletes.
CAS denied USA Gymnastics the opportunity to present new evidence, which USA Gymnastics claims proves that the investigation was filed 47 seconds after Chiles’ score was shown and is therefore a legal investigation. USA Gymnastics vowed to once again appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, the body that gives CAS its legitimacy for arbitrations. Successful appeals to the Swiss tribunal are rare.
Still, Chiles holds out hope that her bronze remains just that. Her bronze.
“I believe that at the end of this journey, the people in charge will do the right thing,” Chiles said.
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(Photo: Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
