Romanian officials give unprecedented solution for reallocation of Jordan Chiles' Olympic bronze medal
PARIS, FRANCE: The never-ending saga of Jordan Chiles' Olympic bronze medal fiasco has taken another turn as now the Romanian Gymnastics Federation (FRG) has come up with a new suggestion.
The FRG issued a statement on Monday, August 12, suggesting that Chiles and the two Romanian gymnasts Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea should get to share the medal in a three-way split.
USA Gymnastics' efforts to appeal the contentious Center of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) verdict, which stated that Chiles' position should be reverted to fifth from third, were dismissed despite the presence of new evidence, as reported by Fox News.
Soon after, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) elevated Barbosu to third place, respecting the CAS decision.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) then said, "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 medal was to be awarded to Barbosu, who initially finished third in the women's floor exercise final.
Romanian authorities urge people to stop attacks against gymnasts
In Monday's statement, the FRG noted, "The initiative to award bronze medals to all three athletes, Jordan Chiles, Ana Barbosu, and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, was proposed by the lawyers of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation, with the prior approval of the Federation."
It continued, "The leadership of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation (FRG), through its representatives, took all necessary steps to reach this consensus. We emphasize that certain requests were made by the American side to achieve this goal, and our side consistently complied with these requests, a fact that was appreciated by the American representative."
The FRG further mentioned, "We hereby appeal to the entire gymnastics community, both within the country and abroad, to put (a) STOP to the attacks against gymnasts Jordan Chiles, Ana-Maria Barbosu, and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, and especially against Nadia Comaneci, whose support has always been in favor of all three athletes/three medals."
"FRG never agreed on taking away a medal," asserted the Romanian officials.
Inside Jordan Chiles' Olympic bronze medal controversy
During the women's floor exercise final on August 5, Team USA's Jordan Chiles came fifth after scoring 13.666 while Romania's Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea finished third as they scored 13.700, as per USA Today.
But Chiles' coach Cecile Landi contested the results, claiming she got fewer points for one element, called a tour jete full.
Following Landi’s inquiry, Chiles' score increased by 0.1, placing her above Romania's Barbosu and Maneca-Voinea.
Then, the FRG filed its case with CAS, appealing the validity of the US coach's appeal, claiming that the inquiry was submitted four seconds late.
On Saturday, the CAS ruled in favor of the Romanian athletes, stating, "The inquiry submitted on behalf of Ms Jordan Chiles in the Final of the women’s Floor exercise was raised after the conclusion of the one-minute deadline provided by article 8.5 of the 2024 FIG Technical Regulations and is determined to be without effect."
USA Gymnastics later claimed to have video evidence of Landi submitting the inquiry 47 seconds after Chiles' score was displayed, but the CAS refused to take it into account, noting, ''The CAS confirms that once the final decision is notified to the parties concerned, the case cannot be reopened at the CAS level."
The USAG and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee now plan to challenge the CAS decision by filing an appeal with the Swiss Federal Tribunal, hoping that Chiles will be able to keep her bronze medal.
