"To add to the heartbreak, the unprompted racially driven attacks on social media are wrong and extremely hurtful," - Gymnast Jordan Chiles says she received online racist abuse after losing her bronze medal from the Paris Olympics
Thursday 15 August 2024 21:46, UK
Gymnast Jordan Chiles says she received online racist abuse after losing her bronze medal from the Paris Olympics in controversial fashion.
"I am overwhelmed by the love I have received over the past few days," Chiles said to begin her statement on social media site X.
"While celebrating my Olympic accomplishments, I heard the devastating news that my bronze medal had been stripped away. I had confidence in the appeal brought by USAG, who gave conclusive evidence that my score followed all the rules. This appeal was unsuccessful. I have no words. This decision feels unjust and comes as a significant blow, not just to me, but to everyone who has championed my journey."
Chiles then turned her attention to the attacks on social media that she said she has received.
"To add to the heartbreak, the unprompted racially driven attacks on social media are wrong and extremely hurtful. I've poured my heart and soul into this sport and I am so proud to represent my culture and my country," she said.
"I will never waver from my values of competing with integrity, striving for excellence, upholding the values of sportsmanship and the rules that dictate fairness. I have taken pride in cheering on everyone regardless of team or country. Finding joy again has been a culture shift and I love seeing others embrace it. I feel like I have given everyone permission to be authentic to who they are."
Chiles won the bronze in women's floor exercise in Paris when her coach submitted an inquiry to challenge the judges' initial score, and her score was corrected from 13.666 to 13.766.
Chiles moved into third place, passing Romanians Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea.
Romania took its case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), saying that the United States' inquiry was not made within the one-minute window stated in the rules. Romania argued that the Americans missed that time limit by four seconds.
Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled in favour of Romania and ordered Chiles' bronze medal to be reallocated to Barbosu, who was level at 13.7 with her countrywoman but had a higher execution score.
USA Gymnastics (USAG) later said it had video evidence that coach Cecile Landi made the appeal 47 seconds after Chiles' initial score was posted, well within the time limit, but CAS said it would not reopen the case.
USAG plans to appeal to the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland.
Meanwhile, TV presenter Laura Woods has revealed she received "numerous death threats to myself and my unborn child" among other insulting messages on social media after commenting on an article about the eligibility of Olympic champion boxers Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting.
Khelif and Lin each won gold in boxing amid a global furore of whether they were eligible to compete in the women's division after an avalanche of criticism and uninformed speculation about their sex on social media.
