U.S. gymnast Jordan Chiles may lose her first individual Olympic medal after a judge on Saturday reinstated her earlier score, which initially landed her in fifth place following Monday’s floor final at the Paris Games.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Saturday ruled in favor of Romanian gymnasts Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea after they protested Chiles’ revised score, which moved the 23-year-old up the ranks to win the bronze medal.
After Chiles earned a score of 13.666 on Monday, her coach filed an appeal with the judges, arguing the gymnast’s difficulty score had been too low. The judges ultimately agreed — specifically regarding a leap that involved a split in the air while turning 540 degrees — and upped her score to 13.766.
The move put Chiles on the podium, while Barbosu, who had originally been awarded the bronze, fell back into fourth place. The review prompted by Team USA also saw Maneca-Voinea’s score reduced by 0.1, after it was determined she stepped out of bounds during her routine.
The Romanian team filed its own appeal in the aftermath of the decision, saying Chiles’ coach filed her appeal four seconds too late. It led the court on Saturday to reverse the earlier ruling and send Chiles’ score back to 13.666.
Later in the day, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), who the CAS said had ultimate say in the final ranking, amended the standings and awarded Barbosu third place.
However, the governing body did not provide information regarding Chiles’ medal — whether she’ll have to give it back or share the bronze with Barbosu. When asked what the amended standings mean for the medals, FIG told The Associated Press that “reallocation of medals is the responsibility of the [International Olympic Committee].”
The IOC had not publicly spoken on the matter or returned a request for comment by early Saturday evening.
USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic Committee issued a joint statement Saturday afternoon, saying they were “devastated” by the CAS ruling.
“The inquiry into the Difficulty Value of Jordan Chiles’ floor exercise routine was filed in a good faith and, we believed, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring,” the statement read.
Both bodies also highlighted the “consistent, utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks” leveled against Chiles online.
In the wake on the previous decision, Chiles faced cheating allegations and, as her mother said Friday, was on the receiving end of “racist disgusting comments.”
Joint Statement from USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee regarding the CAS decision on the women’s floor final:
CAS Decision: https://t.co/KR6DYsfxEk pic.twitter.com/r1e6QKmKA4
— USA Gymnastics (@USAGym) August 10, 2024
“No athlete should be subject to such treatment. We condemn the attacks and those who engage, support or instigate them,” the Olympic Committee’s statement said. “We commend Jordan for conducting herself with integrity both on and off the competition floor, and we continue to stand by and support her.”
Chiles on Saturday shared two Instagram Stories in apparent response to the ruling, as well as the backlash.
She first posted four broken-heart emojis, followed by a message saying she would be “removing [herself] from social media for [her] mental health.”