USA Gymnastics announced on Monday that an arbitration panel would not reconsider its decision to compel gymnast Jordan Chiles to return the bronze medal she received in the artistic gymnastics floor exercise at the Paris Olympics.
According to the governing body, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) notified it on Monday that the rules do not allow for an arbitral award to be reconsidered, even when conclusive new evidence is presented.
“We are greatly disappointed by the decision and will explore all available options for appeal, including taking the case to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, in order to secure fair scoring, placement, and medal recognition for Jordan,” stated USA Gymnastics.
USA Gymnastics submitted additional evidence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Sunday after the Lausanne-based international body ruled in favor of an appeal by Romania’s Ana Barbosa. As a result, Barbosa will move up to third place in the event.
Barbosa and her team appealed to CAS, arguing that an inquiry filed by Chile’s coach over the results of the event was made after the one-minute deadline. They claimed that the American should not be awarded the score of 13.766 that lifted her to third place.
But USA Gymnastics then provided CAS with time-stamped video that it said shows the coach first stated a request to file an inquiry 47 seconds after the score was posted, followed by a second statement 55 seconds after the score was posted.
Chiles had initially been awarded a score of 13.666, while Barbosa scored 13.700. The decision by CAS does not affect either winner Rebeca Andrade of Brazil or silver medallist Simone Biles of the United States, who scored 14.166 and 14.133, respectively.
