U.S. gymnast Jordan Chiles might lose her bronze medal.
Chiles was awarded third place in Monday’s floor exercise final after her coach filed an appeal of her score to the judges. But the Romanian team — whose gymnast was displaced from the podium in place of Chiles — appealed that ruling, saying Chiles’ coach filed the appeal four seconds too late.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled Saturday that they agreed with the Romanians and were taking away the 0.1 points awarded to Chiles, reinstating her initial 13.666 score.
But it’s not up to the CAS whether Chiles will keep her medal.
The CAS panel ruled that the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) will determine the final ranking of the three gymnasts in question and “assign the medal(s) in accordance with the above decision.”
FIG later Saturday amended the standings in Romania’s favor, awarding Ana Bărbosu third place with a score of 13.766. But the federation did not offer much indication about Chiles’ medal, whether she will have to give it back or whether Bărbosu will be awarded with a shared bronze.
Associated Press reporter Will Graves asked FIG about the medal standings, which said that “Reallocation of medals is the responsibility of the IOC,” passing the buck once more.
After finishing her routine on Monday, Chiles’ score was raised to 13.766 after a review by the judging panel found that she should have earned full points for a skill in her routine that was initially uncredited. She had placed fifth before the inquiry, behind both Romanians, but received a tenth back on her final score, boosting her onto the podium.
Two Romanian gymnasts, Sabrina Maneca-Voinea and Bărbosu, finished off the podium after the U.S. appeal in the final.
Rebeca Andrade of Brazil earned gold and Simone Biles, Chiles’ teammate and training mate, took silver.
After the CAS’ decision was announced Saturday, Chiles posted an Instagram story with four broken heart emojis.
“I am taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health thank you,” she wrote in a subsequent story.
The CAS panel struck down two other two Romanian appeals.
In one, the team asked that the 0.1 point penalty for stepping out of bounds on Maneca-Voinea’s final score be returned because it was “given without basis.” It also requested that Chiles, Maneca-Voinea and Bărbosu all be placed in third and earn bronze medals.
In a joint statement, USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee said they were “devastated” by the CAS 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 said. “Throughout the appeal process, Jordan has been subject to consistent, utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media. No athlete should be subject to such treatment. We condemn the attacks and those who engage, support or instigate them. 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 has been outspoken about abuse and racism she’s faced in the gymnastics world, even admitting she almost quit the sport before qualifying for the Tokyo Games. Since Monday’s contentious appeal, she has said she’s faced more attacks on social media.
Romanian gymnastics legend Nadia Comăneci, who was the first gymnast to earn a “perfect 10,” took to social media Tuesday to claim that Maneca-Voinea was incorrectly penalized for going out of bounds in her routine. If she had not received the deduction, Maneca-Voinea would have scored higher than Bărbosu and Chiles, even after Chiles’ score was increased on appeal.
Comăneci posted a clip of the NBC prime-time broadcast of Monday’s final and insisted that Maneca-Voinea’s heel did not touch the mat outside the boundaries.
Maneca-Voinea filed an appeal within the allotted time period Monday, but the judges rejected her inquiry. However, she only appealed the “difficulty” portion of her score at the time, which would not address out-of-bounds deductions.
The prime minister of Romania, Marcel Ciolacu, said Tuesday he planned to boycott the Olympic closing ceremony in protest of the result of the floor final.
“I decided not to attend the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics, following the scandalous situation in the gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in an absolutely dishonorable manner,” Ciolacu said on Facebook. “To withdraw a medal earned for honest work on the basis of an appeal, which neither the coaches nor the top technicians understand, is totally unacceptable!”
The president of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee also sent a “letter of protest” urging the International Gymnastics Federation to re-analyze the exercise.