Lausanne (AFP) – US gymnast Jordan Chiles’s bid to retain her Paris Olympics bronze medal will continue after Switzerland’s top court sent the matter back to the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Thursday. Chiles was awarded floor exercise bronze in Paris after a score revision over degree of difficulty elevated her onto the podium at the expense of Romania’s Ana Maria Barbosu.
However, Romania appealed the decision, and CAS ruled in Barbosu’s favor, finding that the American appeal for the score revision had been made just four seconds too late. Lawyers for Chiles challenged that ruling based on video footage they said “unequivocally proves” the revision appeal was submitted in good time.
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The Swiss Federal Supreme Court said it was referring the case back to CAS “for it to re-examine the situation, taking this new evidence into account.” In the highly exceptional circumstances of the case in question, it considers that there is a likelihood for the audio-visual recording of the final on 5 August 2024 to lead to a modification of the contested award in favor of the applicant (Chiles),” the court said.
USA Gymnastics welcomed the decision. “We are pleased the Swiss Federal Supreme Court recognized the flaws in the initial process and that Jordan’s case can now be heard inclusive of all relevant evidence,” the federation said. “We look 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 Swiss Supreme Court rejected the claim by Chiles’s attorneys that the head of the CAS panel that heard her case had a conflict of interest due to having acted as counsel for Romania for several years.
© 2024 AFP
