Jordan Chiles’ Olympic Bronze: Everything About the Controversy

Gymnastics often involves unexpected twists, but the ongoing dispute over who will officially claim the bronze medal in the 2024 Olympic women’s artistic floor exercise final has been more complex than anticipated.

USA gymnast Jordan Chiles had her first individual Olympic medal taken away after the Romanian gymnastics team contested her final score. Although Team USA’s appeal of that decision was denied on Monday evening, the battle over the bronze medal is far from over.

Here’s the situation so far.

 

A Tight Competition

The women’s floor exercise final was expected to be a close contest even before Chiles took to the mat for her routine on August 5. Romania’s Ana Bǎrbosu and her teammate Sabrina Maneca-Voinea were tied with a score of 13.700.

Chiles’ opportunity to win her first individual medal and stand on the Olympic podium depended on a fraction of a point.

The 23-year-old gymnast performed confidently to a Beyoncé medley, and all three athletes awaited the judges’ scores with anticipation.

Initially, Chiles was given a score of 13.666, placing her fifth. However, after Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade secured the gold, USA Gymnastics Coach Cecile Landi filed an inquiry regarding Chiles’ difficulty score.

Soon after, the judges adjusted Chiles’ score by 0.1 points, raising it to 13.766, which earned her the bronze medal.

This win was historic, marking the first time that all three positions on the Olympic podium were held by Black women. In a gesture of sportsmanship, Chiles suggested she and Simone Biles bow to Andrade, an iconic moment that was captured in a memorable photo.

But the celebration was short-lived.

 

Romania’s Challenge

According to International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) regulations, a coach can challenge a difficulty score as long as the challenge is made verbally immediately after the score is displayed.

The guidelines state that a coach has one minute after the score is posted to make the inquiry for the last gymnast in the rotation.

Since Chiles was the final gymnast to perform, her coaches had to act quickly.

“The person designated to receive the verbal inquiry must record the time of receiving it, either in writing or electronically, which initiates the procedure,” the rules specify.

The Romanian Gymnastics Federation, along with gymnasts Bǎrbosu and Maneca-Voinea, filed an official challenge with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to review the circumstances surrounding Chiles’ score revision.

They argued that the USA Gymnastics inquiry was submitted 4 seconds after the one-minute deadline and that Chiles’ original score of 13.666 should stand. They contended that all three athletes should be awarded a bronze medal.

After a week of behind-the-scenes deliberation, the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld Romania’s challenge on Saturday.

The governing body announced that the inquiry on Chiles’ behalf “was raised after the one-minute deadline and is therefore deemed invalid.”

As a result, the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) was instructed to assign the bronze medal to Bǎrbosu of Romania.

 

Chiles’ Reaction

“We are devastated,” said USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee in a joint statement following the ruling. “The inquiry into the Difficulty Value of Jordan Chiles’ floor exercise routine was filed in good faith and, we believed, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring.”

The statement also noted that Chiles had been subjected to “utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media.”

Following the CAS decision, Chiles posted four broken heart emojis on her Instagram story and announced that she would be taking a break from social media for her mental health, saying, “I am taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health thank you.”

 

USA Gymnastics’ Evidence and Appeal

Later, USA Gymnastics revealed that it had formally submitted additional evidence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to appeal the ruling.

The team provided timestamped video evidence showing that Coach Landi submitted her inquiry “47 seconds after the score was posted, followed by a second statement 55 seconds after the score was initially posted.”

They explained that this footage was not available before the tribunal’s decision and argued that there were “critical errors” in the initial scoring and the CAS appeals process.

“Given these circumstances, we are committed to pursuing an appeal to help Jordan Chiles receive the recognition she deserves. We remain dedicated to supporting her as an Olympic champion and will continue to work diligently to resolve this matter swiftly and fairly,” the team stated.

 

Final Denial of Appeal

Despite these efforts, USA Gymnastics announced that the Court of Arbitration for Sport denied its appeal for Chiles to retain her bronze medal.

“USA Gymnastics was notified by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday that their rules do not allow for an arbitral award to be reconsidered even when conclusive new evidence is presented,” the organization said, adding that it would continue to pursue the case.

“We are deeply disappointed by the notification and will continue to explore every possible avenue and appeal process, including to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, to ensure the just scoring, placement, and medal award for Jordan.”

 

What’s Next?

It’s unclear how long the appeal process might take, and there’s no word on whether Chiles has already returned the medal.

While score revisions are not uncommon, Chiles’ case is unique. Typically, athletes lose their medals when the International Olympic Committee finds evidence of illegal substance use.

For example, Usain Bolt had to return an Olympic gold medal he won in the 4x100m relay at the 2008 Beijing Olympics after it was revealed that his teammate, Nesta Carter, tested positive for a banned substance.