At the Olympics, tricks like twists, spins and flips are typically left to the gymnasts, not the judges who decide whether one or three gymnasts win the bronze medal.
On Wednesday night, the Centre for Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) had a string of harsh words for the floor exercise fiasco at the Paris Olympics.
The CAS said the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) had disqualified American Jordan Chile and both Romania’s Ana Barbos and Sabrina Maneca Boinea and was unable to award medals.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
“A lot of heartache could have been avoided if FIG had put such mechanisms and arrangements in place,” the CAS special committee said in a statement. “The committee expects that FIG will handle the outcome of this case appropriately, with regard to these three exceptional athletes, as well as other athletes and their support staff, to ensure that this never happens again in the future.”
Jordan Chiles of the United States competing in the Paris Olympics. (Reuters/Hannah MacKay)
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation had called for all three gymnasts to be awarded bronze medals, but the CAS said it could not make that decision due to FIG rules.
“The Committee found that the applicants had failed to demonstrate the application of the ‘fair play principle’ in support of the requested relief. As the IOC noted at the hearing, granting such a request would require the Committee to apply the principle of fairness, but it would also be required to apply the rules of law, unless the parties agree otherwise, which in this case the parties have not done.”
“Thus, even in strict application of the FIG rules, it is not possible to allocate three bronze medals in this event unless the parties agree and award them, which the FIG disagrees with.”
The CAS upheld its decision to reinstate Chile’s 13.666 points and promoted Barbos to third place.
Gymnastics great suggests Olympic umpire’s error ruined Jordan Chiles’ bronze medal
Jordan Chiles of the United States poses for a photograph with her gold and bronze medals after the third day of the artistic gymnastics finals at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris on August 5, 2024. (Kyle Terada – USA Today Sports)
“The Commission’s task is to make a decision based on the law and the evidence, and in this case it merely notes that both are crystal clear regarding the one-minute rule and its application to the circumstances of this case,” the ruling said. “It is not the Commission’s role to apply any principles of fairness, to determine who should receive the medals, or to determine, as some parties have suggested, that there should be more than one bronze medal recipient.”
“If the Panel had been in a position to apply impartial principles, it would undoubtedly have awarded bronze medals to all three gymnasts, taking into account their performance, their good faith and the injustice and hardship they suffered, in circumstances where FIG had not provided any mechanism or arrangement for implementing the one-minute rule established under Article 8.5.”
“If the FIG had put such mechanisms and arrangements in place, a lot of heartache could have been avoided. The committee expects the FIG to handle the outcome of this case appropriately with regard to these three exceptional athletes, as well as other athletes and their support staff, to ensure that this never happens again in the future.”
USA Gymnastics fired back at the committee in a statement. USA Todaysaid he would not agree to his release.
Olympic medalist weightlifter criticizes village sleeping conditions: “There’s no atmosphere”
“USA Gymnastics strongly disagrees with the detailed decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport released today,” the organization said. “As noted in the decision, USA Gymnastics did not learn of the lawsuit until Aug. 9, three days after it was filed, two days past the deadline for panelist challenges, and less than 24 hours before the hearing was due to begin because CAS sent its filings in the lawsuit to an incorrect email address.”
Jordan Chiles of the United States celebrates after winning the bronze medal in the floor exercise during the third day of the artistic gymnastics finals at the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games on August 5, 2024 in Paris. (Jack Gruber – USA Today Sports)
“Furthermore, CAS did not send any conflict of interest disclosures for any panelists to USA Gymnastics and has not reviewed any of the disclosures to date. As previously discussed, video evidence later provided to USA Gymnastics and submitted to CAS conclusively established that head coach Cecile Landi verbally asked a question 47 seconds after the scores were announced, within the one-minute time limit set by FIG rules.”
“We continue to seek justice for Jordan Chiles and will pursue these and other issues through appeal.”
Click here to get the FOX News app
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation announced that it will award Barbos a bronze medal.
Follow Fox News Digital X’s sports coverageSubscribe Fox News Sports Huddle Newsletter.
