Olympic Leaders Facing Backlash For 'Arrogant' Use of Jordan Chiles Photo

American gymnast Jordan Chiles has been stripped of her bronze medal following controversial decisions from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Chiles won bronze with a third-place finish in the Floor Exercise finals at the 2024 Paris Olympics. But after the CAS ruled an American score inquiry invalid, the 23-year-old gymnast dropped into fifth.

The IOC denied a USA Gymnastics appeal and ruled that Chiles must return her medal.

Despite this devastating result for Chiles, Olympics.com is still promoting her podium  moment with Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade as the "photo of Paris 2024."

"Just happened upon this on Olympics.com. Can you imagine just how clueless and arrogant the leaders of the Olympic world and international sports have to be to ruin what the Olympics official site proposed might be 'the photo of Paris 2024?'" USA Today columnist Christine Brennan wrote on X.

An inquiry from USA Gymnastics coaches initially resulted in a 0.1 score bump for Chiles, moving her Floor Exercise score from 13.666 to 13.766. Chiles jumped over two Romanian gymnasts into third, pushing Ana Barbosu off the podium.

A few days after Chiles' bronze medal win, the CAS ruled that the inquiry was made outside of the allowed one-minute window. Despite USA Gymnastics' video evidence showing that the inquiry was made in time, the appeal was denied.

Chiles issued her first public statement since the decision on Thursday.

"I have no words," Chiles wrote. "This decision feels unjust and comes as a significant blow, not just to me, but to everyone who has championed my journey," she continued before calling out the hateful messages that the situation has brought upon her. "To add to the heartbreak, the unprompted racially driven attacks on social media are wrong and extremely hurtful. I've poured my heart and soul into this sport and I am so proud to represent my culture and my country."

Related: Jordan Chiles Praised For Courageous Response to Bronze Medal Decision