Jordan Chiles Speaks Out as She Continues to Fight to Reclaim Stripped Olympic Bronze Medal

Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles is determined to reclaim her bronze medal after a controversial decision led to its revocation. The 23-year-old athlete spoke candidly on NBC’s “TODAY” show Monday, describing the ongoing battle as “a very difficult time.” Chiles and her legal team are challenging the decision, maintaining that the medal was awarded fairly.

Jordan Chiles joins us live with the latest on her ongoing battle for bronze. pic.twitter.com/oQ5aEotKPL

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) November 11, 2024

Although Chiles still physically possesses the medal, the official record lists her as finishing in fifth place. “It’s hard to tell yourself everything is going to be fine when we literally didn’t do anything wrong. Everything was in the time that it needed to be,” Chiles said in her first live TV interview on the situation. “For them to come back and say it was four seconds too late when we have proof … I can only control what my truth is and I know that we were right.”

Chiles initially finished fifth in the floor exercise at the Paris Olympics in August. Her coach, Cecile Landi, contested the judges’ scoring of Chiles’ routine’s difficulty, resulting in a corrected score that boosted Chiles to third place. However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) later upheld a Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling that Landi’s protest was filed 64 seconds after scores were posted, exceeding the 1-minute deadline by just four seconds. Chiles and her team maintain that video evidence proves the protest was submitted within the allowed timeframe.

As a result, the bronze medal was reassigned to Romanian gymnast Ana Bărbosu, 18. Chiles, supported by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee and USA Gymnastics, filed an appeal with Switzerland’s Supreme Court in September to have the decision overturned.

Chiles, whose father is Black and mother is Latina, has faced racist backlash online since the controversy erupted. Despite holding a team gold from Paris and a bronze from Tokyo, Chiles explained why this particular medal is so meaningful to her. “It was like a cherry on top. My redemption tour going into Paris was ‘Yes.’ Coming back with a gold, coming back with the understanding that I was able to go out there and be the best version of myself,” she said. “With this floor medal, it was like, ‘Wow, I never expected myself to make a floor final.'”

Chiles also noted the historic significance of the podium, which featured all Black gymnasts. “It was an all-Black podium. That was history being made. I was very glad to be a part of it,” she said.

Despite the challenges, Chiles remains resilient. “I’ll be able to overcome this. And I’ll be able to look back and say, ‘You know what? That was just a portion of my story, but it’s the truth,’” she shared.

When asked about potentially competing in the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics, Chiles said: “LA is in and out of my mind. I think right now, I’m just trying to take in what’s happened from Paris and just take it day by day.”