Jordan Chiles, the U.S. gymnast whose bronze medal was controversially revoked after the 2024 Paris Olympics, won a major legal victory Thursday. Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court granted her appeal and ordered a fresh review of her case by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
The decision sets the stage for Chiles to potentially reclaim the Olympic bronze medal she initially earned in the women’s floor exercise. The ruling comes nearly 18 months after the original dispute erupted at the Bercy Arena in Paris.
Unusual Legal Turn in Olympic Dispute
Chiles originally finished fifth in the floor exercise final on Aug. 5, 2024. Her coach, Cécile Canqueteau-Landi, filed an inquiry about a scoring element, which resulted in a revised score of 13.766 and moved Chiles into the bronze medal position. However, the CAS later voided that appeal, saying the coach missed the one-minute filing deadline, and reinstated Chiles’ original score.
As a result, Romanian gymnast Ana Maria Bărbosu was awarded the bronze medal by the International Gymnastics Federation after the CAS ruling.
In its ruling Thursday, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court said there are “highly exceptional circumstances” that justify a new review. The judges noted that new audio-visual evidence could show Chiles’ coach filed the inquiry within the required one-minute period.
“The Federal Supreme Court acknowledged that this new evidence may justify a modification of the contested award,” said the court in a statement.
Reactions and Next Steps
Chiles’ attorney, Maurice M. Suh, welcomed the decision. “We are delighted that the Swiss Federal Supreme Court has righted a wrong and given Jordan the chance she deserves to reclaim her bronze medal,” he said. “We appreciate that Jordan will receive a full and fair opportunity to defend her bronze medal.”
USA Gymnastics also issued a statement of support, saying it looks forward to “a fair arbitration that includes the clear evidence proving the inquiry into Jordan’s score was filed well within 1 minute as required by FIG rules.”
The CAS will now reconsider the case, taking the new evidence into account. There is no set timeline for the review, but legal analysts anticipate the process could take more than a year.
Chiles, 24, already owns a gold medal from the 2024 women’s artistic team all-around event. If her appeal succeeds, she would earn a second medal from the Paris Games.
The medal dispute drew global attention in part because Chiles stood on the podium in Paris alongside gold medalist Rebeca Andrade of Brazil and silver medalist Simone Biles of the United States, marking a historic moment for athletes of color in gymnastics.