Conflict Of Interest In Jordan Chiles Medal Decision Revealed

A conflict of interest in the decision to overturn the results of the 2024 Paris Olympics women's gymnastics floor final, forcing American Jordan Chiles to fall out of third-place , has been revealed.

Hamid G. Gharavi , the head of the three-person Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled on the complaint by Romania, had previously served as legal counsel to Romania in disputes at the World Bank's International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes and his work for the Romanians goes back nearly a decade, according to documents obtained by the New York Times . Court of Arbitration for Sports arbitrators are required to disclose conflict of interest prior to the beginning of hearings, which the tribunal claims Gharavi did and there hadn't been objections from parties involved.

“In accordance with the guidelines on conflicts of interest issued by the International Bar Association (IBA), CAS has no reason to remove an arbitrator making such disclosure if the parties do not object to his/her appointment,” a statement from the Court of Arbitration of Sports read.

The court will not reconsider its decision, USA Gymnastics said in a statement obtained by ESPN on Monday (August 12), vowing to continue its efforts to allow Chiles to keep the bronze medal.

"USA Gymnastics was notified by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday that their rules do not allow for an arbitral award to be reconsidered even when conclusive new evidence is presented," USA Gymnastics said. "We are deeply disappointed by the notification and will continue to pursue every possible avenue and appeal process, including to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, to ensure the just scoring, placement, and medal award for Jordan."

The International Gymnastics Federation modified that Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu finished in third-place in the women's gymnastics floor final following the Court of Arbitration for Sport's decision to amend the final ranking:

Following the publication of the decision CAS OG 24/15 by the Ad Hoc Division of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the FIG confirms that the results of the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Floor Exercise Final on Monday 5 August 2024 are amended in accordance with this decision as follows:

The initial score of 13.666 given to Jordan Chiles (USA) is reinstated

The ranking of the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Floor Exercise Finals has been modified accordingly with Ana Barbosu (ROU) ranking third with a score of 13.766.

The court ruled that the appeal made by U.S. coach Cecile Landi resulting in Chiles having an additional .1 added to her score came outside the one-minute window allowed by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), though USA Gymnastics said it now has video evidence to prove otherwise. The CAS said the initial finishing order of Brazil's Rebeca Andrade , Biles and Barbosu should be restored, while Chiles would finish fifth behind Barbosu's Romanian teammate Sabrina Maneca-Voinea .

The court said the FIG will ultimately make the decision on the final official finishing order, but advised that it did so "in accordance with the above decision." The podium of Andrade, Biles and Chiles marked the first time a gymnastics podium was comprised of three Black women in Olympic history.

Chiles had previously won gold in the women's team all-around final .

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