Many people all around the world consider the Olympics to be one of the most exciting moments of the year. This year, the Olympics were in Paris, and they were considered one of the most bizarre, yet thrilling Olympics in recent times in terms of both athletics and drama. Although it may have been enjoyable to view the swimming events with family or celebrate when U.S.A. men’s basketball won their fifth consecutive gold medal, the boiling hot, controversial topics lingering from this summer have captivated people the most.
Most Olympic sports this summer had their moments of doubt and questionable events regarding specific competitors or scoring choices, but none were more contentious than those of women’s gymnastics. Both men’s and women’s gymnastics experienced varying degrees of success in the 2024 Olympics, but it seems that the impressive nature of these athletes is not what’s grabbing attention, but rather the controversy between the removal of U.S.A. gymnast Jordan Chiles’ bronze medal on the floor exercise of the women’s artistic final.
This all begins with the floor finalists for U.S.A. women’s gymnastics on August 5. Along with Chiles, the legendary eleven-time Olympic medalist, Simone Biles, and Auburn all-star Suni Lee also performed their routines on the Olympic stage. The United States is always noted for its proficiency in women’s gymnastics, so viewers were not surprised when all five U.S.A. female gymnasts performed beautifully at their respective events.
Lee delivered a groundbreaking performance for her floor routine, and Biles was powerful as usual on her passes. Chiles also shined in a floor routine littered with nods toward her motto, “I’m that girl.” Her Beyonce-esque number received a score of 13.666, which was enough to put her in fifth place among the floor routines.
Chiles was last among the women who performed in the individual floor finals. The two women who were in third and fourth place were Romanian gymnasts Ana Bǎrbosu and Sabrina Moneca-Voinea respectively; despite having the same score of 13.700, Bǎrbosu was placed higher in the rankings due to her execution score.
Although the rankings were finalized, U.S.A. women’s gymnastics coach Cecile Landi was not content with Chiles’ score. She submitted an inquiry for her concerns.
An inquiry, according to Yahoo Entertainment, is a “formal challenge to a gymnast’s score following their routine.” The challenge in question was that Landi believed Chiles had not been scored accurately on her tour jeté, a leap in which you twist your body in the other direction while splitting your legs midair. After the judges reviewed the submitted inquiry, they elevated Chiles’ score by .100, putting her in third place above Bǎrbosu and Maneca-Voinea.
After the scores were posted for viewers to see, Chiles was pictured jumping up and down with Biles, tears in her eyes and a smile on her face. On the other side, Bǎrbosu was seen trying to hold back tears while looking up at the screen displaying the final scores. Chiles, Biles, and Brazilian gold medalist Rebecca Andrade shared the podium as the medalists for the women’s floor final of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Days after the floor final took place in Paris, another challenge was made by the Romanian Gymnastics Federation to counteract the previous inquiry submitted by U.S.A. coach Landi.
According to U.S.A. Today, the Romanians had “challenged the validity of the inquiry, saying it was filed four seconds beyond the deadline by which any scoring appeals had to be submitted.”
If any coach wishes to submit an inquiry, it has to be made aware by the judges within one minute, whether verbal or written. U.S.A. Gymnastics defended Landi and Chiles by stating that the verbal inquiry had been submitted within 47 seconds, along with video evidence. The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which had previously debunked the acceptance of Landi’s inquiry, renounced the U.S.A.’s response. To top it off, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) asked Chiles to return her bronze medal to Bǎrbosu after the CAS regressed the scores.
During this time, Chiles was also under scrutiny on numerous digital platforms for her jump from fifth place to third for the floor final. Many people online criticized her for taking the bronze medal from Bǎrbosu while others threw racial slurs at her due to their distaste.
The brutality of the hate comments online only continued to escalate across social media platforms. @fearfiona on X, previously known as Twitter, captioned a meme involving a man putting a chain around another man’s neck for a brief moment.
The user wrote, “jordan chiles letting the romanian gymnast wear her bronze medal for 5 seconds [sic].”
Another X account titled “Pro-Pigeon Propaganda Account” directed another hit towards Chiles amid the controversy.
The account stated, “I love Jordan Chiles, but the inquiry that changed her score so she could get the bronze medal feels…yucky,”
Chiles responded to both the organizations that had contacted her regarding her medal and the online trolls chastising her: “I heard the devastating news that my bronze medal had been stripped away. I have no words…To add to the heartbreak, the unprompted racially driven attacks are wrong and extremely hurtful,” Chiles said. “I will never waiver from my values of competing with integrity…I believe that at the end of this journey, the people in control will do the right thing.”
Fans of Chiles rushed to her aid against social media users taking aim at her online. @SprnkleofSchoee tweeted, “want to send the biggest hug to jordan chiles,”
Complex also released a comment made by Biles supporting Chiles and her devastation over online attacks and the loss of her bronze medal. “Do we think they did the correct procedures to come to this ruling?” Biles asked as reported by Complex.
Adding fuel to the flame, reports from the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution were released that claimed the president of the three-member CAS panel, Dr. Hamid G. Gharavi, had been linked to supporting Romania in previous legal cases. On August 14, the CAS put out a statement to protect the will of Gharavi: “The CAS condemns the outrageous statements published in certain US media,” CAS said. “As none of the parties involved in this case has challenged any Panel member during this procedure, it can be reasonably assumed that all parties were satisfied to have their case heard by this Panel.”
Finally, the story seemingly ends with Bǎrbosu receiving her bronze medal on August 16 in Bucharest, Romania.
In support of Chiles and her fellow teammate Maneca-Voinea, Bǎrbosu said this while at the ceremony: “I can’t help but think about Sabrina [Meneca-Voinea] and Jordan [Chiles] right now…I hope everyone understands that we have not done anything wrong…and that the Olympic spirit is more important than any misunderstanding between the authorities.”
Although the controversy is continuing onto the Swiss Federal Tribunal to make the ultimate decision, it is still emotional for both athletes. It is difficult to come to terms with the fact that it could potentially not work out for both performers despite their brilliant routines. Hopefully, Chiles and Bǎrbosu will be able to move past the impending drama and work toward standing next to one another on the podium in Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics.
