Jordan Chiles Bronze Medal Controversy Takes a New Turn as Latest Evidence Shows FIG at Fault

What should have been a moment of victory for Jordan Chiles is instead clouded by chaos and confusion. After filing an appeal and moving up from fifth to third place in the floor exercise at the Olympics in Paris, the American gymnast was given the bronze medal. Her first Olympic medal as an individual was that one. However, when Chiles’s appeal was lodged four seconds after the one-minute time limit, according to the Romanian Olympic Committee, chaos ensued.

After the Court of Arbitration for Sport denied Chiles’s request to retain the gold, the International Gymnastics Federation took away Chiles’s medal and gave it to Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu.”I’m at a loss for words. Chiles posted on social media, “This decision feels unfair and is a major blow to everyone who has supported my path, not just to me.”

However, some fresh information has surfaced that makes everyone think of one word: incompetence.

The CAS verdict discovered the startling differences listed below:

1. “The Panel was startled that no clear and established system appeared to be in place to address so essential a subject as the timing of a request for an inquiry, and that the FIG was unable to identify the individual who logged the information as to time.”

2. “When the Panel questioned Ms. Sacchi (FIG president) about the timing of Ms. Chiles’ inquiry, she acknowledged that she was not in a position to confirm whether the inquiry had been submitted on time, that is, within the one-minute window, and that she had not verified it either. Ms. Sacchi clarified that when she received the inquiry notification electronically (via her “tablet”), there was no indication that it had been received later than expected.

3. “The Panel asked Ms. Sacchi a number of questions about the procedure used to file an inquiry, including details about how the monitoring that was required to be submitted within the allotted one-minute window was carried out and who was in charge of it. Specifically, the Panel wanted to know if the monitoring was carried out by the OMEGA electronic system, Ms. Sacchi’s supervisor, or any other individual. FIG and Sacchi were unable to give any information in response to these queries that would have suggested the existence of a system for keeping track of how soon any query was completed.

These results, however, merely raise more queries for us.

How did the FIG ascertain that the harm occurred after the one-minute rule since they were unable to identify the individual who received the verbal abuse?

It’s possible that entering the verbal injury into the Omega system took the victim a few seconds.

According to the CAS report, the injury was reported at 1 minute and 4 seconds based on the Omega system. Why weren’t steps taken to halt the review done if that was the case?

This is not the end of it. Additionally, it was discovered that the individual who answered the question wasn’t employed by FIG and wasn’t listed on any of their records.

The study also said that the Omega system’s claimed time of one minute and four seconds was not contested by any party. Jordan Chiles’ original score of 13.666 will be restored.

The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) was established in 1881 and has served as the global regulatory organisation for gymnastics, which makes the entire episode shocking. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has also acknowledged it. Eight disciplines are actually under the jurisdiction of the FIG: Parkour, Aerobic Gymnastics, Acrobatic Gymnastics, Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics, Trampoline Gymnastics (including Double Mini-trampoline and Tumbling), Gymnastics for All, and Rhythmic Gymnastics.

The dispute is currently being pursued by the USAG through the Swiss Federal Tribunal, adding to the confusion. However, despite the FIG and the CAS still having not provided the USAG with enough answers, many in the gymnastics world and outside continue to believe that the drama should be settled peacefully.

Although Jordan Chiles is still in danger, she has supporters!

One of the most trying periods of Jordan Chiles’ career is currently upon her. However, the sheer amount of support she has been receiving is immense. Renowned Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci took to social media to share her thoughts on the situation when Chiles was asked to surrender her medal.

After the American’s predicament gained attention, she commented on X on August 5, saying, “I can’t believe we play with athletes mental health and emotions like this.”

Rather, she asserted, a peaceful solution to the issue could be achieved by recognising the gymnasts’ work in the City of Love and giving them the bronze medal. Tennis legend Patrick McEnroe echoed a similar idea.

“To me, at the end of the day, there were so many mistakes made by the judges in this instance…So IOC…wake up and do the right thing,” the tennis veteran grumbled. US Democrat Representative Stephen Cohen also personally wrote to the CAS to consider Chiles’ situation with fairness considering the judges didn’t score one of her moves in the first place.

Jordan Chiles and Team USA have no plans to return the hard-earned medal as there were significant errors in judging Chiles’s routine, plus chaos in the procedures later. It looks like this saga could go on for longer than what we would expect.

Reflecting on the situation, how do you think Jordan Chiles’ misfortune could be mitigated in a better and more acceptable manner? Do you believe the situation could be altered so that both Chiles and Ana Barbosu could agree to the final verdict by the CAS? Share your thoughts with a comment below!