Jordan Chiles, a gymnast from the United States, has launched an appeal to the highest judicial institution in Switzerland, seeking to reverse a decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport that led to her losing her bronze medal for the floor exercise at the 2024 Olympics.
The legal step, initiated by Chiles on a Monday, has been backed by both the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee and USA Gymnastics. Previously, Chiles was awarded the bronze in Paris following an appeal against her original score which moved her position from fifth to third.
However, the Romanian Olympic Committee claimed that Chiles’ appeal was filed four seconds past the one-minute deadline. This led to the Court of Arbitration for Sport invalidating the appeal, followed by the International Olympic Committee’s directive to Chiles to surrender her medal. Consequently, Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu stepped up to the third-place position, while Chiles returned to fifth. As a result of this, the American athlete, aged 23, suffered substantial online harassment, some of which was racial in nature.
Chiles’ latest appeal claims that she was denied her “right to be heard” during the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s hearing, as they wouldn’t take video evidence that she and USA Gymnastics believe would prove that her Paris appeal was filed within the required time limit. Moreover, her appeal further states that the president of the panel of Court of Arbitration for Sport, Hamid G Gharavi, may have a conflict of interest due to his historic legal connections with Romania.
On the same Monday evening, USA Gymnastics released a statement which explains their “collective, strategic” choice to let Chiles lead the initial appeal. They went on to promise to work closely with Chiles and her legal representatives, to support the court case in their ongoing fight for justice for Chiles.
This appeal is the latest advancement in a possibly long-drawn-out legal struggle which may last for months or even years.
Just the previous week, Chiles expressed her emotional torment after her bronze was taken from her. In her own words, “The biggest thing that was taken from me was, it was the recognition of who I was. Not just my sport, but the person I am.”
Chiles expressed her struggle to understand her penalty despite adhering to the established guidelines, “I adhered to the regulations, just like my coach. We did everything absolutely correctly,” indicated Chiles. The aftereffects of this predicament marred a previously heartwarming moment at the medal presentation, where Chiles was firstly granted a bronze medal. Chiles, along with her American compatriot Simone Biles, paid homage to Rebeca Andrade from Brazil, the gold medallist of the event. This was a remarkable occasion in the Olympic floor exercise, marking the first time all three medallists were of African descent.