10 months ago
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(KTLA) -- American gymnast Jordan Chiles said she is facing "one of the astir challenging moments" successful her vocation aft being ordered to return the bronze medal she won successful the level workout astatine the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Chiles released a statement connected Thursday expressing her disappointment 3 days aft an planetary sporting tribunal rejected an entreaty to instrumentality the medal to her.
"I person nary words," Chiles wrote. "This determination feels unjust and comes arsenic a important blow, not conscionable to me, but to everyone who has championed my journey."
After Chiles finished her level regular successful the final, she was awarded a people of 13.666, placing her 5th down Romania’s Ana Bǎrbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who tied astatine 13.700.
Team USA manager Cecile Landi appealed to the judges to reconstruct an constituent successful Chiles' routine, which was approved and raised her people by 0.1, earning her a bronze medal.
But the Romanian Gymnastics Federation requested a reappraisal of the decision. The Court of Arbitration for Sport found that Landi’s entreaty was made 4 seconds past the 1-minute deadline, which meant Chiles would person to instrumentality her medal.
Jordan Chiles, of the United States, competes during the women's creator gymnastics idiosyncratic level finals astatine Bercy Arena astatine the 2024 Summer Olympics, Aug. 5, 2024, successful Paris, France. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)USA Gymnastics (USAG) past appealed the reversal; however, the tribunal ruled that it could not reconsider, adjacent successful airy of caller video grounds to enactment Chiles' assertion for bronze.
"I had assurance successful the entreaty brought by USAG, who gave conclusive grounds that my people followed each the rules," Chiles wrote. "I americium present confronted with 1 of the astir challenging moments of my career. Believe maine erstwhile I accidental I person had many. I volition attack this situation arsenic I person others -- and volition marque each effort to guarantee that justness is done. I judge astatine the extremity of this journey, the radical successful power volition bash the close thing."
Chiles had been soundless astir the stripping of her medal until Thursday. In her recently released statement, the 23-year-old besides thanked fans for their support.
"I americium overwhelmed by the emotion I person received implicit the past fewer days. I americium besides incredibly grateful to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, USAG, and the USOPC for their unwavering enactment during this hard time," she wrote.
After the ruling was issued connected Monday, USA Gymnastics said it volition support warring for Chiles.
"We are profoundly disappointed by the notification and volition proceed to prosecute each imaginable avenue and entreaty process, including to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, to guarantee the conscionable scoring, placement, and medal grant for Jordan," the enactment said successful a statement.
Chiles took location a golden medal astatine the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics arsenic a subordinate of the U.S. women's gymnastics squad, which won the all-around squad event.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
