Aly Raisman is heartbroken for Jordan Chiles.
Raisman, who won two gold medals in London in 2012 and another in Rio in 2016, Appearance on NBC’s “Today” show To discuss the controversy that led to Chiles being stripped of his bronze medal.
“It’s just so heartbreaking. My heart goes out to Jordan,” Raisman said on the show. “I can’t imagine what this past week has been like for him and the other players. It’s just so devastating.”
“I don’t think people realize that gymnasts work their whole lives for this moment, and it’s something to celebrate,” Raisman continued. “Seeing Jordan celebrate was one of my favorite moments of the Olympics. I feel like it’s so unfair. It’s so cruel.”
Raisman pointed to a precedent where multiple athletes have won the same medal.
“I don’t think Jordan should give his medal back. The IOC has awarded multiple medals in the past and I think they should do it again this time,” Raisman said.
The controversy surrounding Chile’s bronze medal at the Paris Olympics began with the floor exercise, where Romania’s Ana Barbos was initially listed as third.
When the U.S. asked for Chilis’ score to be reviewed, she overtook Barbos.
But the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the U.S. request for a rescoring was not made within the one-minute time limit, rejecting an appeal by USA Gymnastics, which had argued it had evidence the rescoring was filed in time.
2024 Paris Olympics
In an interview with the “Today” show that aired before her appeal was denied, Raisman called the process “terrible.”
“As athletes, we trust the process, we trust that the rules are in place, that there’s a lot of thought behind them, and that the rules are there to be fair,” she said. “Going forward, we need to understand why this is happening and how we can make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
“It’s awful, but I think the organisation in charge of this really needs to think about the mental state of the athletes and how this is affecting them and how cruel it is to strip someone of a medal,” she continued. “It just doesn’t make sense to me.”
