.jpg?w=480&auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max)
USA Olympic officials are challenging a recent court decision that has led to American gymnast Jordan Chiles being asked to return the bronze medal she earned in the floor exercise at the Paris Olympics. The decision came from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which annulled the initial on-floor appeal made by Chiles' coach. The reasoning behind the annulment was that the coach's appeal allegedly occurred four seconds past the one-minute limit allowed for scoring inquiries.
In response, USA Gymnastics has contested the CAS ruling, arguing that it was based on incorrect timing. According to a statement released by the organization on Sunday, USA Gymnastics presented video evidence indicating that coach Cecile Landi initiated the appeal 13 seconds before the one-minute deadline elapsed.
“The time-stamped, video evidence submitted by USA Gymnastics Sunday evening 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.”
On Saturday night, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) declared its intent to respect a recent court decision, which mandated the adjustment of the competition outcome. This judicial ruling necessitated the elevation of Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu to third place, following an intense scrutiny of her performance scores.
Further cementing the impact of this decision, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed the ruling on Sunday. In a rare move, the IOC announced it would reallocate the bronze medal from Monday’s final.
“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,” the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee statement said.
In a recent ruling, the CAS concluded that Team Landi's request to amend Chiles' score came too late. The CAS determined that Landi's appeal, which sought to add 0.1 points to Chiles’ score, was submitted 1 minute and 4 seconds after the original score was posted.
The IOC clarified its stance, stating that it would engage with the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) concerning the return of Chiles' bronze medal. Furthermore, the IOC intends to coordinate with the Romanian Olympic Committee to deliberate a reallocation ceremony to honor Romania's Ana Barbosu, who stands to benefit from this development.
“The initial error occurred in the scoring by FIG, and the second error was during the CAS appeal process, where the USOPC was not given adequate time or notice to effectively challenge the decision,” said a USOPC statement, which was released Sunday.
It was unclear the exact process the appeal would take first. The two potential places the USOPC could take the appeal would be to Switzerland’s highest court, the Swiss Tribunal, or the European Court of Human Rights.
CAS wrote Saturday that the initial finishing order should be restored, with Barbosu third, Romanian Sabrina Maneca-Voinea fourth and Chiles fifth. The FIG said it was the IOC’s call on whether to reallocate the medal. The IOC confirmed Sunday it would respect FIG’s decision and seek to have Chiles’ medal returned.
