Gymnast Jordan Chiles Appeals Medal Revocation in Swiss Court

In a significant development in the world of gymnastics, Jordan Chiles, a member of Team USA’s women’s gymnastics team, has filed an appeal with the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland after being stripped of her bronze medal from the women’s floor event. This appeal follows a controversial decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which ruled against Chiles in favor of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation’s complaint.

During the competition, Jordan Chiles originally placed fifth with a score of 13.666. Following a submission by her coach, Cecile Landi, which challenged the scoring, Chiles’s score was raised by 0.1 points due to a re-evaluation of her performance. This adjustment moved her into the third-place position. However, the Romanian Gymnastics Federation contested this, leading to a CAS investigation. The investigation concluded that Landi’s inquiry was made four seconds after the allowable one-minute window for such protests, resulting in Chiles’s score being reduced and her bronze medal revoked.

The CAS decision declared Ana Barbosu from Romania as the rightful bronze medalist. In response, Chiles’s legal team has presented new evidence, comprising video footage purportedly showing that the inquiry was actually submitted 49 seconds post her result announcement. This footage, crucial to Chiles’s appeal, has been highlighted in the Netflix documentary produced by Religion of Sports and directed by Katie Walsh, which also features Simone Biles‘s experiences.

Maurice M. Suh, representing Jordan Chiles, stated that this appeal touches on vital questions of fairness within Olympic arbitration processes. Suh has argued that there was a breach of Chiles’s “fundamental right to be heard,” citing CAS’s initial refusal to review the video evidence as a key factor in their appeal. The case has sparked discussions on the integrity and transparency of the arbitration process in sporting events.

Chiles’s case now awaits deliberation in Switzerland, where she and her team hope for a favorable outcome. The decision will be closely monitored not just by the gymnastics community, but by all advocates for fairness in competitive sports.