USA Gymnastics has submitted evidence to prove that Jordan Chiles’ inquiry was completed within the required time period, challenging a ruling that said Chiles must return her bronze medal due to its late submission.
The claim came shortly after the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) ruled that head coach Cecile Landi submitted an inquiry to improve Chiles’ four seconds after the prescribed time limit. The court consequently struck the inquiry, and the American finished in fifth place instead of third.
Now, USA Gymnastics has stated that video evidence shows Landi submitted the inquiry within the time limit and that the bronze medal should remain with Chiles.
“The time-stamped video evidence submitted by USA Gymnastics Sunday evening shows Landi first stated her request to file an inquiry at the inquiry table 47 seconds after the score is posted, followed by a second statement 55 seconds after the score was originally posted,” wrote USA Gymnastics in a statement posted on social media.
“The video footage provided was not available to USA Gymnastics prior to the tribunal’s decision, and thus, USAG did not have the opportunity to previously submit it,” USA Gymnastics said.
A source from within USA Gymnastics stated that no other information about the video is allowed to be released due to CAS confidentiality rules regarding the appeal process, per USA Today.
This submission of new video evidence comes as USA Gymnastics attempts to get Chiles’ bronze medal score of 13.766 reinstated by the CAS following a ruling over the weekend that reduced her score and took her off the podium.
Chiles competed in the women’s floor exercise event during the Paris Olympics and initially received a 13.666 but quickly submitted an inquiry to get a slightly higher score, per the Associated Press.
Judges at the event agreed with the submission, and Chiles’ new score of 13.766 moved her into third place, leapfrogging her ahead of Romania’s Ana Barbosu, who finished with an overall score of 13.700.
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation then filed an appeal with the CAS that claimed the inquiry should not be counted due to it being submitted four seconds past the allotted time limit, per USA Today.
The CAS reviewed the case and determined that the Romanian Gymnastics Federation was correct in its claim, resulting in Chiles being stripped of the bronze medal.
Former Team USA gymnast Aly Raisman, who won six Olympic medals in two appearances, said it was a “heartbreaking” and “completely devastating” situation for Chiles and the International Olympic Committee should seek a solution that would allow her to keep the bronze medal.
“I don’t think people realize these gymnasts work their entire lives for this moment, and it’s supposed to be a celebration. … I think it’s so unfair. It’s so cruel. And I don’t think Jordan should have to give her medal back. The IOC has given more than one medal before, and I think they should do that now – it’s awful,” she said, per Fox News.