Jordan Chiles must return Olympic bronze medal after arbitration decision, IOC says

PARIS (AP) — American gymnast Jordan Chiles must return the bronze medal she won in the Olympic Games in Paris Floor exercise after the sport’s highest court annulled a floor appeal by Chiles’ coach, which lifted Chiles to third place, the International Olympic Committee confirmed on Sunday.

The IOC announced early Sunday that it would transfer the bronze from last Monday’s women’s floor final to Romania’s Ana Barbosu, after the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) said on Saturday evening that it would respect the source. the decision of the court and elevate Barbosu to third place.

The decision came less than 24 hours after the Court of Arbitration for Sport declared a scoring appeal invalid made by Team USA coach Cecile Landi during the match that put Chiles on the podium.

CAS ruled on Saturday that Landi’s call to add 0.1 to Chiles’ score fell outside the 1-minute period allowed by the FIG. The ad hoc committee wrote that Landi’s inquiry came one minute and four seconds after Chiles’ first score was posted.

The IOC said in a statement that it will liaise with the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee on the return of the Chilean bronze and will work with the Romanian Olympic Committee to discuss a redistribution ceremony in Barbosu’s honour.

CAS wrote on Saturday that the initial finishing order should be restored, with Barbosu third, Romanian Sabrina Maneca-Voinea fourth and Chiles fifth. The organization added that the FIG should determine the final ranking “in accordance with the above decision”, but left it to the federation to decide who would receive the medal behind gold winner Rebeca Andrade of Brazil and silver medalist Simone Biles from the USA.

The FIG said it was the IOC’s call on whether or not to reallocate the medal. The IOC confirmed on Sunday that it would respect FIG’s decision and seek to regain Chile’s medal.

The fast-paced turn of events adds another layer to what has been a difficult few days for all three athletes.

Romanian gymnastics legend and 1976 Olympic champion Nadia Comaneci feared for Barbosu’s mental health over the shock run that saw her go from bronze medalist to fourth place.

“I can’t believe we are playing with athletes’ mental health and emotions this way… let’s protect them,” says Comaneci posted on X earlier in the week.

Comaneci simultaneously criticized the judges for the way they scored Maneca-Voinea’s routine: the gymnast was given 0.1 points for going out of bounds, but viral replays showed she barely stayed within bounds. Comaneci urged the Romanian Olympic Committee to protest, which it did, but CAS rejected that appeal.

Chiles alluded to the decision in a Instagram story on Saturday, indicating that she is heartbroken and “taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you.”

Jazmin Chiles, Jordan’s sister, said on Instagram that Chiles was stripped of a medal “not because she wasn’t good enough. But because the judges failed to give her trouble and forced an investigation.”

American teammates offered support to Chiles, a two-time Olympian.

“Sending you so much love, Jordan,” American star Simone Biles posted on Instagram. “Keep your chin up, ‘Olympic champion’, we love you.”

“All this talk about the athlete, what about the judges?” six-time Olympic medalist Sunisa Lee added on Instagram. “Completely unacceptable, this is terrible and I am devastated for Jordan.”

USA Gymnastics said in a statement Saturday that it was “devastated” by the ruling.

“The investigation into the difficulty of Jordan Chiles’ floor exercises was submitted in good faith and, in our opinion, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring,” the organization wrote.

Barbosu and Maneca-Voinea were left out of the medals in the floor final after finishing with matching scores of 13.700. Barbosu thought she had won bronze over Maneca-Voinea via a tiebreak – a higher execution score – and started celebrating with a Romanian flag.

Chiles was the last athlete to compete and initially received a score of 13.666, placing her fifth, just behind Maneca-Voinea. Landi called for an investigation into Chiles’ score.

“At this point we had nothing to lose, so I thought, ‘We’re just going to give it a try,’” Landi said after the awards ceremony. “I honestly didn’t think it was going to happen, but when I heard her scream I turned around and was like, ‘What?'”

Judges upheld the appeal, letting Chiles pass Barbosu and Maneca-Voinea.

Barbosu made it a point after returning home to Romania that she had no problems with Chiles.

“I just want everyone to be honest, we don’t want to start bullying other athletes of any nationality,” Barbosu told reporters. “We as athletes don’t deserve anything like that, we just want to perform as well as possible and be rewarded based on our performance. The problems lie with the judges, with their calculations and decisions.”

Chiles’ mother, Gina Chiles, called out the critics in a post, writing that she was “tired” of the derogatory comments against Jordan.

“My daughter is a highly decorated Olympian with the biggest heart and a level of sportsmanship that is second to none,” Gina Chiles wrote. “And she’s called disgusting things.”

The uncertainty also colors what had been beautiful moment on the medal stand, as Chiles and Biles knelt to honor Andrade after the Brazilian star won her fourth medal in Paris.

“It was exactly the right thing to do,” Biles said of a moment that quickly went viral, with even the Louvre itself suggests that it might be worthy enough for a spot somewhere near the Mona Lisa.

That memory now carries a complicated and emotional postscript.

Associated Press writer Stephen McGrath and AP Sports writer Graham Dunbar contributed to this report.

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