USA Gymnastics Challenges Demand For Jordan Chiles To Return Bronze Medal, Says It Has Receipts

USA Gymnastics is contesting the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to have Jordan Chiles return the bronze medal she was awarded last week at the Paris Games, and it has provided receipts to back up its challenge.

“USA Gymnastics on Sunday formally submitted a letter and video evidence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, conclusively establishing that Head Coach Cecile Landi’s request to file an inquiry was submitted 47 seconds after the publishing of the score, within the 1-minute deadline required by FIG rule,” USA Gymnastics, the national governing body for the sport, said in a statement. 

The letter requested that the “ruling be revised and Chiles’ bronze-medal score of 13.766 reinstated.”

The gymnastics results have been mired in controversy after Chiles first took fifth place, earning her a score of 13.666 in the women’s floor exercise final. Her coach, Cecile Landi, argued that the judges had inaccurately assessed the difficulty level of the routine, which led to her score being adjusted to 13.766. This was enough to bump her into third place ahead of Romanian gymnasts Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who both had final scores of 13.700.

But then Romania’s Olympic committee disputed the ruling, saying the American team’s complaint wasn’t submitted within the 60-second window that was required. On Sunday, the IOC announced its decision to strip Chiles of her bronze medal and give it to Barbosu.

This announcement set off a firestorm of backlash on social media from critics insisting the decision was unfair and racist.

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Now, USA Gymnastics says it has “time-stamped, video evidence” which “shows Landi first stated her request to file an inquiry at the inquiry table 47 seconds after the score is posted, followed by a second statement 55 seconds after the score was originally posted.”

“The video footage provided was not available to USA Gymnastics prior to the tribunal’s decision and thus USAG did not have the opportunity to previously submit it,” USA Gymnastics said.

Chiles has remained mostly quiet on the controversy, telling her Instagram followers on Sunday, “I am taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you.” She had previously shared an Instagram story featuring broken heart emojis after she was asked to return her bronze medal.