PARIS: American gymnast Jordan Chiles lost her bronze medal in the women’s floor exercise at the Paris Olympics after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled on Saturday that the jury had wrongly granted an investigation that moved her from fifth place.
As a result, 18-year-old Romanian Ana Barbosu was awarded a floor medal by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) later on Saturday.
Devastated Chiles posted four broken hearts on Instagram, adding: “I’m taking this time off social media for my mental health, thank you”.
US superstar teammate Simone Biles said: “Sending you so much love Jordan. Keep your chin up Olympic champion! We love you!”
In response to requests made by the Romanian Gymnastics Federation and gymnasts Barbosa and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, CAS ruled that the appeal regarding Chiles’ level of difficulty was made after the one-minute time limit for such questions and should not have been granted.
After review, Chiles’ score, which won team gold with the United States, was increased to 13.766. That was enough to win bronze behind Brazil’s Rebecca Andrade and Biles.
But it was a devastating blow for Barbosa, who thought she had won bronze with her score of 13.700.
Both she and Maneca-Voinea, who was relegated to fifth place, left the competition in tears.
“I can barely express my emotions, I can’t believe it,” Barbosu told Romanian media on Saturday after winning her country’s only medal in the gymnastics competition.
“When I heard the news, I was afraid it wasn’t true, and as soon as I was sure, I hugged my parents and called everyone who helped me.”
Such scoring queries are regularly made during gymnastics competitions, some are rejected and others are upheld, leading to a change in scores.
Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu called it a “scandalous situation” and said he would boycott the closing ceremony of the Olympics.
The drama unfolded on Monday at the final event of the gymnastics competition at the Bercy Arena.
CAS said in a statement that its decision applied to Chiles’ score, which it said should be restored to the original 13.666.
But CAS did not decide on the final floor exercise order, saying the FIG would have to decide the medals.
USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee released a joint statement saying they were “devastated” by the decision.
“The inquiry regarding the difficulty value of Jordan Chiles’ floor exercise was made in good faith and, we believed, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring,” the governing bodies said.
“During the appeal process, Jordan was subjected to sustained, completely baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media.
“No athlete should be subjected to such treatment. We condemn attacks and those who commit, support or instigate them.”
“We commend Jordan for her conduct of integrity both on and off the field of competition, and we continue to stand by her and support her.”
