American gymnast Jordan Chiles has not given up on the eventual return of the individual bronze medal that she won at the Paris Olympics but was subsequently stripped of for a procedural rule violation.
Chiles said she had been devastated by last weekend’s news that she had lost third place in the floor event after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in favour of an appeal by Ana Maria Barbosu, who was subsequently awarded the bronze.
“I have no words. This decision feels unjust and comes as a significant blow not just to me but to everyone who has championed my journey,” the 23-year-old Chiles wrote in an Instagram post.
“To add to the heartbreak, the unprompted racially driven attacks on social media are wrong and extremely hurtful. I’ve poured my heart and soul into this sport and I am so proud to represent my culture and my country.”
Romanian Barbosu and her team had appealed to CAS that an inquiry filed by the U.S. team over the results of the floor exercise, which led to Chiles’s initial score being revised upwards, had been registered four seconds after the one-minute deadline allowed by the International Gymnastics Federation.
The success of the Romanian appeal meant Chiles’s score was reduced and she fell out of third place behind Brazilian winner Rebeca Andrade and silver medallist Simone Biles, her American teammate.
Barbosu was handed a bronze medal — a different one to that received by Chiles — in a small ceremony attended by Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in Bucharest on Friday.
“I did not realise how heavy it is,” she told the audience. “I am glad to be in possession of this medal and I hope to continue to represent Romania at the highest level.”
USA Gymnastics presented additional video evidence to CAS on Sunday which it felt proved there had been no procedural error but the Lausanne-based legal body said in its published ruling on Thursday that the breach had been “crystal clear”.
CAS also said that it had no power to order that a second bronze medal be given to Chiles, “as some of the parties have proposed”.
Chiles, who also won team gold with Biles in Paris, said she would fight on and held out some hope that the authorities would ultimately relent.
“I am now confronted with one of the most challenging moments of my career,” she added.
“I will approach this challenge as I have others — and I will make every effort to ensure that justice is done. I believe that at the end of this journey, the people in control will do the right thing.”
