American gymnast Jordan Chiles‘ appeal for the bronze medal she lost on floor exercise at the 2024 Paris Olympics has been granted.
Switzerland’s supreme court sent the case back to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to review new evidence, stating “highly exceptional circumstances” as the reason for Chiles’ attempt to regain her medal.
Chiles’ chance to reclaim an Olympic medal depends entirely on whether the U.S. team can prove they filed a timely appeal on her behalf in the Olympic arena.
In a rare move in this kind of case, Switzerland’s federal judges ruled that Jordan Chiles could get back the bronze medal she was originally awarded in Paris.
Chiles’ third-place finish was overturned within days on appeal by the Romanian team to the CAS’ Olympic court in Paris. The medal was awarded in Bucharest the next week to Ana Maria Barbosu.
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Chiles initially won the bronze medal, but it was later overturned and awarded to Barbosu. The change came after the Romanian team successfully appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s (CAS) Olympic court in Paris.
The court is now trying to force CAS to review a recording that could prove the original U.S. challenge of the score was made within the one-minute deadline on the field of play.
In a statement, the Swiss Federal Tribunal said, “In the highly exceptional circumstances of the case in question. It considers that there is a likelihood for the audio-visual recording of the final on Aug. 5, 2024, to lead to a modification of the contested award in favor of the applicant (Chiles),” CBS News reported.
The CAS said in a statement that it “can now ensure a thorough judicial review of the new evidence that has since been made available.”
CAS and Switzerland’s supreme court, both in Lausanne (the Olympic Capital), gave no timeline for the review, which is expected to take at least a year before a verdict.
With the federal court’s decision, Chiles has a fresh hope of retaining her medal and finally moving past the controversy.
“We are delighted that the Swiss Federal Supreme Court has righted a wrong and given Jordan the chance she deserves to reclaim her bronze medal,” Maurice M. Suh, part of the legal team representing Chiles, said in a statement. “As the Court recognized, there is ‘conclusive’ video evidence that Jordan was the rightful winner of the bronze medal.”
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Suh announced that Chiles plans to correct “the flaws in the initial process and that Jordan’s case can now be heard inclusive of all relevant evidence.”
USA Gymnastics also praised the court for recognizing “the flaws in the initial process” and confirming that Chiles’s “case can now be heard inclusive of all relevant evidence.”
The organization added, “USA Gymnastics will continue to support the efforts of Jordan and her team to retain her bronze medal in the 2024 Olympic women’s floor exercise. We look forward to a fair arbitration that includes the clear evidence proving the inquiry into Jordan’s score was filed well within 1 minute as required by FIG rules.”
Chiles recently achieved a career milestone by scoring her first-ever “perfect 10” on the vault, leading UCLA to victory against Nebraska in their season home opener at Pauley Pavilion. The 24-year-old was thrilled, securing the all-around individual title and continuing her run of consecutive Big Ten Gymnast of the Week awards.
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