Jordan Chiles’ Bronze Medal Stripped After CAS Ruling
In a shocking turn of events, American gymnast Jordan Chiles has been stripped of her bronze medal in the floor exercise at the Paris Olympics after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled that her appeal was filed four seconds after the one-minute allowable time limit.
According to the CAS ruling, Chiles’ coach, Cecile Landi, filed an appeal of Chiles’ score when she believed the judges failed to properly score Chiles’ degree of difficulty. However, the appeal was filed after the one-minute deadline, making it invalid.
As a result, Chiles’ score has been dropped from 13.766 to her original 13.666, which is lower than Romania’s Ana Barbosu, who scored a 13.700. The CAS directed the Federation of International Gymnastics (FIG) to "determine the rankings of the floor exercise and assign the medal(s) in accordance with the [CAS] decision."
The FIG confirmed the CAS ruling, stating that Chiles’ score would return to its original 13.666, and Barbosa would return to third place. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) also announced that it would "reallocate the bronze medal" to Barbosa.
USA Gymnastics has blasted the CAS ruling, stating that the precise timing of the inquiry is not nearly as important as getting the actual score correct. They also condemned online attacks against Chiles after she jumped ahead of Barbosa.
Chiles was awarded the medal after Monday’s floor final, where she finished ahead of Barbosa. The three gymnasts, including Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, who won the gold, created an indelible image of sportsmanship when they bowed to each other on the podium.
The inquiry process in gymnastics is unique, requiring a "verbal inquiry" to a score one minute after posting of the score, which must be electronically "confirmed" within four minutes. USAG also had to agree to pay the Federation of International Gymnastics the amount of 300 Swiss Francs ($351.10) if the inquiry was denied.
The situation has sparked controversy, with Romanian president Marcel Ciolacu stating he would boycott Sunday’s closing ceremonies over the situation. Chiles has been subject to online attacks, which USA Gymnastics has condemned.
The reallocation of medals is now up to the IOC, and it remains to be seen what will happen next.
