The Olympian publicly addresses the devastation of having her bronze medal stripped from her and says she will continue to fight for justice.
Overwhelmed with the support she’s received in recent days, Olympian Jordan Chiles has spoken out about being stripped of her Olympic bronze medal following her gymnastics floor final, and remains hopeful in the fight for justice.
On Aug.15, the 23-year-old gymnast released a statement on Instagram to address the recent ruling made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). “I have no words,” Chiles said of CAS’s reversed decision. “This decision feels unjust and comes as a significant blow, not just to me, but to everyone who has championed my journey.” Chiles said that receiving the news, while she celebrated her Olympic accomplishment, was devastating and the incident has presented her with one of the “most challenging moments” of her career.
As previously reported by BLACK ENTERPRISE, Chiles was awarded the bronze medal following an inquiry that boosted her score and placed her in the winning spot above Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu. However, the athlete was ordered to return her medal following the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee’s request to review the scoring, a decision the athlete’s sister deemed as racist.
“I had confidence in the appeal brought by USAG, who gave conclusive evidence that my score followed all the rules,” Chiles stated in her Aug. 15 Instagram post, adding that the appeal was “unsuccessful.”
Ahead of her statement, BE noted Chiles’ announcement to fans that she would be stepping away from social media due to the controversy that has erupted from the scandal. The athlete, who still holds onto a gold medal she won at the Paris Games alongside her fellow Team USA peers in the women’s gymnastics team final, has remained graceful even though she has been bombarded with racial attacks on social media. “I will approach this challenge as I have others — and will make every effort to ensure that justice is done,” Chiles said.
“I believe that at the end of this journey, the people in control will do the right thing,” Chiles said, and promised fans that the controversy will not prompt her to waver from her core values or compete with integrity as she continues to strive for excellence, represent her culture, and cheer on her peers.
As of Aug. 13, the Olympics confirmed that CAS wasn’t willing to reconsider its decision as “their rules do not allow for an arbitral award to be reconsidered even when conclusive new evidence is presented.” Chiles’ score was reverted from 13.766 to 13.666, dropping her back to the fifth place spot. USA Gymnastics stated its commitment to fight for the USA gymnast to keep her bronze medal.
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