Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles has broken her silence after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in favor of stripping her of her hard-earned bronze medal.
In a heartfelt statement shared on Instagram Thursday, Chiles, 23, expressed her gratitude for the unwavering support she’s received amidst the frustrating back-and-forth of appeals regarding the results of the women’s floor final during the Paris Summer Games on August 5.
“I am incredibly grateful to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, USAG, and the USOPC for their unwavering support during this difficult time,” Chiles shared. “While celebrating my Olympic accomplishments, I heard the devastating news that my bronze medal had been stripped away.”
Chiles said she “had confidence in the appeal brought by USAG, who gave conclusive evidence that my score followed all the rules.” But ultimately, “this appeal was unsuccessful.”
“I have no words,” Chiles said of the result. “This decision feels unjust and comes as a significant blow, not just to me, but to everyone who has championed my journey,” she continued before calling out the hateful messages that the situation has brought upon her. “To add to the heartbreak, the unprompted racially driven attacks on social media are wrong and extremely hurtful. I’ve poured my heart and soul into this sport and I am so proud to represent my culture and my country.”
Chiles continued, stating, “I will never waver from my values of competing with integrity, striving for excellence, upholding the values of sportsmanship and the rules that dictate fairness. I have taken pride in cheering on everyone regardless of team or country. Finding joy again has been a culture shift and I love seeing others embrace it. I feel like I have given everyone permission to be authentic to who they are.”
The Olympian — who also won gold in the team final with Simone Biles, Hezley Rivera, Jade Carey and Sunisa Lee in Paris — said she is “now confronted with one of the most challenging moments of my career,” in her statement, noting that she has faced “many” similar challenges in her decorated career.
“I will approach this challenge as I have others — and will make every effort to ensure that justice is done. I believe that at the end of this journey, the people in control will do the right thing,” Chiles concluded.
On Aug. 10, Chiles was officially stripped of her bronze medal in the floor exercise after a judge for the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in favor of two Romanian gymnasts Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who initially finished in fourth and fifth place in the final before Chiles’ score was changed to more accurately reflect the difficulty level of her routine.
But the Romanian National Olympic Committee protested to the CAS that Chiles’ coach Cecile Landi hadn’t submitted the inquiry that resulted in Chiles’ updated score in time.
“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,” the ruling stated.
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