Jordan Chiles appeals to Swiss supreme court over stripping of Olympic bronze
Jordan Chiles is asking Switzerland’s Supreme Court to overturn a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport that stripped the gymnast of her floor exercise bronze medal at the 2024 Olympics.
Chiles filed an appeal on Monday, with the support of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and USA Gymnastics.
Chiles was initially awarded bronze in Paris after an appeal against the judges’ assessment of her routine was upheld, and she was promoted from fifth to third. However, the Romanian Olympic Committee said the appeal was filed four seconds after the one-minute time limit. Cas subsequently overturned Chiles’ appeal, and the IOC ordered the American to return her medal. Romania’s Ana Barbosu was promoted to third, while Chiles dropped to fifth. The 23-year-old American has received widespread abuse on social media, some of it racist.
Chiles’ appeal argues that the CAS hearing violated her “right to be heard” by refusing to allow video evidence that Chiles and USA Gymnastics believe showed that Chiles’ appeal in Paris fell within the one-minute limit. Chiles’ appeal also argues that Hamid G Gharavi, chairman of the CAS panel, has a conflict of interest due to prior legal ties to Romania.
USA Gymnastics wrote in a statement Monday night that it made a “collective, strategic decision to put Jordan in charge of the initial filing. USAG is working closely with Jordan and her legal team and will make supporting submissions to the court in the continued pursuit of justice for Jordan.”
The appeal is the next step in a legal battle that could last months or years.
Last week, Chiles spoke about the emotional aftermath of being stripped of her bronze. “The biggest thing that was taken away from me was the recognition of who I was. Not just my sport, but the person I am,” she said.
Chiles said it was difficult to process being punished despite following procedures. “I followed the rules. My coach followed the rules. We did everything that was absolutely, absolutely right,” Chiles said.
The fallout from the saga also tarnished what had been a moving moment during the medal ceremony, where Chiles initially took bronze. Chiles and her U.S. teammate, Simone Biles, knelt to honor Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, who won gold in the event. It was the first time in Olympic floor exercise that all three medalists were black.