Olympic athlete Jordan Chiles stripped of bronze medal following score controversy
Lucy Devine
Featured Image Credit: Alex Gottschalk/DeFodi Images via Getty Images/Markus Gilliar - GES Sportfoto/Getty Images
Olympic athlete Jordan Chiles has been stripped of her bronze medal following controversy over her score.
The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) has now confirmed that Ana Barbosu, of Romania, has had her place of third position in the competition reinstated.
It all kicked off when Team USA gymnast Chiles was awarded with the third place accolade at the Olympics floor final, following a difficulty score inquiry submitted by her coach, Cecile Canqueteau-Landi.
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Simone Biles took home the silver medal, while Brazil's Rebeca Andrade took the gold.
While Chiles had scored 13.666 in the final - initially putting her in fifth place - it was later upgraded to 13.766, which placed her third and ahead of Barbosu.
Due to the score change, Barbosu lost her place on the podium.
The athlete had already been celebrating her bronze win, and was gutted when the appeal meant she lost out.
However, this has now been overturned. The decision came after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld an appeal from the Romanian Olympic Committee.
It claimed that the inquiry into Chiles' score was made four seconds outside of the one-minute window for appeals and therefore would need to be disregarded.
Since the controversy, Chiles has been subject to trolling on social media, with viewers divided over what happened.
One internet troll commented: "The coaches cheated so Jordan could get a medal! What a coincidence."
This prompted support from fans backing Cecile who herself decided to share her response to the accusation.
She directly replied to the comment starting off: "I shouldn’t have to explain but I will ONCE.
"Jordan’s highest possible SV on floor is a 5.9 - At quals and team finals she received a 5.8 and we didn’t question it because we saw that not all elements were completed.
"During floor finals, we thought I was better and being placed 5th with nothing to lose, I sent the inquiry so I wouldn’t regret not asking."
Meanwhile, in a joint statement posted to X, USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee said: "We are devastated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling regarding women’s floor exercise.
"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.
"Throughout the appeal process, Jordan has been subject to consistent, utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media.
"No athlete should be subject to such treatment. 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."