Getty Image / Alex Gottschalk
It was a dramatic scene on Monday, August 5, when Jordan Chiles was elevated into the bronze medal position after an inquiry following her routine at the 2024 Summer Olympics Floor Exercise was approved, moving her up from 5th place to 3rd. It’s been a total rollercoaster since.
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation, the nation of the gymnast she beat out for bronze, filed suit at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which overturned the inquiry and required Chiles forfeit her medal and awarded it to Ana Barbosu. But, there’s been another turn in the case that could end up with Jordan Chiles keeping her medal.
Chiles initially scored a 13.666 on her Floor Exercise routine in the event final, putting her in fifth place behind two tied Romanian gymansts, with Barbosu having the advantage on execution score. But, Chiles’ coach, Cecile Landi, filed an inquiry on her difficulty score, and the judges decided to credit her with a skill called a Gogean, giving her an extra tenth of D score and moving her up into third. With Chiles being the last routine of the competition, the bronze medal was hers, and she received it on the podium.
But, on Saturday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled after Romania filed suit that the inquiry was not submitted in time, coming at 64 seconds after the score was posted instead of the allotted minute. They ruled that Chiles must return her medal to be awarded to Barbosu.
But, on Sunday, USA Gymnastics revealed they had video evidence that shows the inquiry being submitted within the allotted time.
USA Gymnastics has submitted additional evidence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. pic.twitter.com/GOKymbAtcq
— USA Gymnastics (@USAGym) August 11, 2024
It’s unclear what will happen next, and both the Romanian Federation and American officials had agreed with awarding two bronze medals, only to be rebuffed by the IOC. But, that seems like the most fair thing here, especially since video shows the other Romanian gymanst who was tied with Barbosu, Sabrina Voinea, was penalized for stepping out of bounds when she did not.
Authorities need to get this situation right, that’s for sure.