Jordan Chiles has to give back her bronze medal because appeal was 4 seconds too late, IOC says (2024)

PARIS — U.S. gymnast Jordan Chiles must return her bronze medal in the floor exercise, the International Olympic Committee said Sunday, upholding findings that a coach’s appeal that got her on the podium shouldn’t have been allowed.

Chiles, 23, had initially finished fifth in the competition on Monday before U.S. coach Cecile Landi successfully lobbied that her difficulty score had been undercredited.

Officials on the scene agreed and adjusted Chiles’ score by 0.1 points to 13.766, which boosted her above two Romanian athletes, triggering an angry reaction from that delegation.

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Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said he’d refuse to attend the closing ceremony in protest.

The IOC said Sunday it would abide by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled that Landi’s protest was made 64 seconds after scores were posted. The deadline for such action is one minute.

Chiles was the victim of some bad luck, as well, because she went last in the floor exercise final, so she had only one minute to file an inquiry about her score.

Athletes who performed ahead of her had until the next gymnast started her routines to file inquiries, which is typically three or four minutes.

Chiles’ inquiry concerned a skill in her routine called a Gogean, which is a split leap with a 1.5-turn. The judges didn't originally give her credit for the move.

The judges’ score sheets are not made public, but it's noteworthy that the CAS ruling dealt only with the timing of Landi's action, not the validity of the inquiry.

Romanian Ana Bărbosu, 18, will now be the floor exercise bronze medalist.

“Following the CAS decision with regard to the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Floor Exercise Final and the amendment of the ranking by the International Gymnastics Federation, the IOC will reallocate the bronze medal to Ana Bărbosu (Romania),” the IOC said in a statement Sunday. “We are in touch with the NOC of Romania to discuss the reallocation ceremony and with USOPC regarding the return of the bronze medal.”

The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee pushed back a few hours later and said it would be filing an appeal of its own.

“We firmly believe that Jordan rightfully earned the bronze medal, and there were critical errors in both the initial scoring by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and the subsequent CAS appeal process that need to be addressed,” it said in a statement.

“Given these circ*mstances, we are committed to pursuing an appeal to help Jordan Chiles receive the recognition she deserves,” the U.S. committee said. “We remain dedicated to supporting her as an Olympic champion and will continue to work diligently to resolve this matter swiftly and fairly.”

USA Gymnastics rebutted the claim, saying Landi filed for the inquiry in 47 seconds, within the one-minute window. The organization said Sunday that it has submitted time-stamped video evidence.

“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,” the organization said.

Bărbosu said in a statement that she sympathizes with the fifth-place Chiles and the fourth-place Sabrina Maneca-Voinea.

"Sabrina, Jordan, my thoughts are with you," she said in a statement Sunday. "I know what you are feeling because I've been through the same. But I know you'll come back stronger."

The teenager says she looks forward to competing again with Chiles and Maneca-Voinea.

"I hope from deep of my heart that at the next Olympics, all three of us will share the same podium," she said.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether or how Chiles would physically return the medal.

She has already left France and appeared on NBC’s “TODAY” show Thursday in New York City.

Chiles still has a gold from the women’s team all-around. She won silver in Tokyo, also in the team all-around.

“We are devastated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling regarding women’s floor exercise,” USA Gymnastics said in a statement Saturday night. “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.”

USA Gymnastics also said Chiles has been “subject to consistent, utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media” since the matter came to light.

“No athlete should be subject to such treatment,” it said in the statement. “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 posted four broken-heart emoji on her Instagram account Saturday and said she’d be off social media to processes the stunning turn of events.

“I am taking the time and removing myself from social media for my mental health thank you,” she wrote.

David K. Li reported from Paris and Katie Distler and Kaetlyn Liddy from New York.