A contentious judging decision and messy appeals process has roiled women’s gymnastics — and spiraled into an international argument for Olympic bronze between the US and Romania.
At the center: American gymnast Jordan Chiles and Romanian gymnast Ana Bărbosu, whose razor-thin fight for an Olympic medal has already blow up into threats of legal action and vows for “justice.”
The drama kicked off last Monday during the floor exercise in Paris.
Initially, Chiles finished fifth with a score of 13.666. But after her coach filed an inquiry, arguing Chiles should’ve been awarded more difficulty points, her score was upped to 13.766 — enough to net bronze.
The stunning about-face unfolded in real time. Bărbosu, who’d been awarded bronze before the inquiry, looked up at the scoreboard mid-celebration to see that she’d been dethroned. She dropped her Romanian flag and rushed off in tears.
Chiles, meanwhile, fell to the floor in tears, hugging her coach Cecile Landi and teammate Simone Biles before receiving her medal on the podium.
And the shocking switch may not have been the only scoring error. Bărbosu’s teammate, Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, scored 13.700 in her routine after she was deducted .1 points for stepping out of bounds. But replays later appeared to show that Maneca-Voinea’s foot didn’t go out and the gymnast has since asserted she didn’t go out of bounds.
But Maneca-Voinea’s coach didn’t asked for a review that day.
The medals were reordered after Landi’s challenge was deemed too late
Chiles’ triumph was short-lived.
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation and two of its gymnasts filed a challenge to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), arguing that Landi’s inquiry on Chiles’ behalf was levied too late.
After a hearing, CAS determined Saturday that the US challenge had come after the one-minute cutoff, so Chiles’ score was reset lower, dropping her off the podium.
CAS dismissed a separate appeal over Maneca-Voinea’s deduction.
The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) then amended the order of the medals to reflect the CAS ruling, with Bărbosu reclaiming bronze. It kicked the final decision to the International Olympic Committee, which ordered Chiles to return her bronze medal.
But USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) said in a joint statement that Landi’s inquiry came within the appropriate timeframe and condemned “extremely hurtful” attacks against Chiles; the gymnast announced a break from social media during the uproar.
USA Gymnastics is ready to go to court
USA Gymnastics vowed to continue fighting for Chiles’ medal, even as CAS reiterated its decision is final.
On Sunday, USA Gymnastics said it had video evidence — which it hadn’t previously submitted — which proved Landi’s inquiry was made within 47 seconds.
But the US’s hopes of an easy reversal were quickly dashed. On Monday, USA Gymnastics said it had been notified that CAS’ decision was final — even in the face of “conclusive new evidence.”
According to CNN, CAS said in a statement that the USA and Romania “had ample opportunities to present their arguments and objections” during the hearing on Saturday.
CAS said the Swiss Federal Tribunal could reopen the case if new evidence emerges or all parties agree, CNN reported.
USA Gymnastics vowed Monday to “continue to pursue every possible avenue and appeal process, including to the Swiss Federal Tribunal.”
Chiles’ US gymnastics teammates backed her up.
“Sending you so much love, Jordan,” Biles wrote in an Instagram Story post. “Keep your chin up Olympic champ! We love you!”
Fellow gymnast Suni Lee also criticized the judges in her own Instagram post.
“All this talk about the athlete, what about the judges??” Lee wrote. “Completely unacceptable. This is awful and I’m gutted for Jordan. I got your back forever Jo.”
Meanwhile, Bărbosu reportedly praised her competition in her own Instagram post.”Sabrina, Jordan, my thoughts are with you. But I know you’ll come back stronger,” she wrote in an Instagram story over the weekend. “I hope from deep of my heart that at the next Olympics, all three of us will share the same podium. This is my true dream.”
USA Gymnastics declined to comment beyond the statements on its website. Reps for Chiles and CAS did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
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