An emotional Jordan Childs felt as though she was “left in the dark” in the aftermath of the bronze medal controversy that engulfed U.S. gymnasts' experiences at the Paris Olympics and beyond.
Recounting the incident at the Forbes Power Women's Summit on Wednesday, a tearful Childs recounted the aftermath: Childs was demoted from fifth to third in last month's floor exercise final following an investigation by the U.S. team, sparking a controversy with the Court of Arbitration for Sport that led to the 23-year-old athlete being stripped of her bronze medal.
“The biggest thing that was taken from me was the perception of who I am as a person — not just the sport, but who I am as a person,” Childs said. “To me, everything that happened wasn't about the medals, it was about the color of my skin. It was about the fact that there were so many things that went into getting to where I am as an athlete, and I felt like everything was taken away from me.”
Competing in her second Olympic Games, Chiles earned 13.666 points in the floor exercise final on August 5.
Romanian gymnasts Ana Barbos and Sabrina Maneca Boinea received 13.700 points each, with Barbos receiving the higher score of 8.000.
After the scores were counted, Chile qualified for the podium with 13.766 points, behind Brazil's Rebeca Andrade (gold medal) and compatriot Simone Biles (silver medal).
The Court of Arbitration for Sport later ruled that the review from the U.S. team was submitted after the deadline.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) ordered Chilis to return his medal, but Barbos won the bronze medal in a post-Games competition.
The UCLA athlete spoke Wednesday about losing his passion for the sport.
“When I lost my love for the sport in 2018, I felt like I had lost it again,” she said. “I didn't have very many people that I thought would support me and help me through that situation, and I didn't feel that way either. I really felt like I was left in the dark.”
Ms Childs then recalled being “emotionally and verbally abused by my coach” six years ago and how she “was never able to voice her opinion or have it heard”.
“What I feel now, being in this situation, is that my voice has not been heard,” said Childs, who also won gold in the team all-around at the Paris Olympics.
“…But I made history and I will continue to make history, and that's what I did. I followed the rules, my coaches followed the rules…So, the fact that I wasn't informed, I feel like they just took all of that away and just tried to slap the name gymnastics in front of it.”
Childs called the situation “one of the most difficult moments” of his career and vowed in an August 15 social media post to “do everything in my power to see that justice is done.”
