The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has detailed its reasons for the controversial decision to strip American gymnast Jordan Chiles of her first individual Olympic medal. A 29-page document criticises the global governing body for gymnastics, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), accusing it of mismanaging the event and refusing to award all three top-performing athletes – including Romanian gymnasts Ana Bărbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea – with bronze medals. FIG is also criticised for failing to log a time-sensitive inquiry into scoring from Chiles’ coach.
CAS has argued that an equitable solution would have involved awarding all three gymnasts a bronze medal, pointing towards their good faith and the perceived injustice and pain they suffered. The court also suspects that FIG deliberately avoided implementing a “one minute rule” – a contingency policy for close-score disputes. The fallout has been highly dramatic, leading to one of the most intensely followed and disputed sagas of the Paris Olympic Games.
Since the ruling, USA Gymnastics has pledged to appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal in hopes of having the decision overturned. It alleges that there was not enough time to present a thorough case in defense of Chiles, and that the gymnast’s score was actually challenged 47 seconds after being published, rather than four seconds late as CAS claimed. In public comments about the case, Chiles said she is hopeful of keeping her bronze medal.
CAS was also forced to respond to a New York Times report that suggested the panel overseeing the case could be biased due to its head, Hamid G. Gharavi, having represented Romania before in unrelated arbitrations. However, CAS contested this claim, stating that Gharavi’s participation was not challenged during the arbitration process and that all parties should thus be assumed to be satisfied with the panel that was appointed to listen to this case.
The central issue revolves around the moment when Chiles’ coach, Cecile Landi, questioned the scoring system. As per FIG regulations, the review was meant to be placed within one minute, but CAS found it was submitted late. Since then, FIG has rearranged the final standings and the International Olympic Committee has said it would reallocate Chiles’ medal to Bărbosu.
Both CAS and FIG have faced criticism for their handling of this case. CAS states that FIG lacked a clear method to determine immediately whether an inquiry was submitted late, even though the inquiry was submitted electronically. CAS believes if a clearer process had been in place, much of the resultant heartache could have been avoided. Despite the fallout, FIG has yet to comment on the ruling or respond to the wider controversy.
