Simone Biles Responds to Gymnastics Scoring Controversy
Simone Biles remains unfazed by the potential loss of an additional gold medal due to yet another gymnastics scoring controversy surrounding her floor exercise at the upcoming Paris Olympics. Recent footage captured by a documentary crew for the Netflix series “Simone Biles: Rising” surfaced, revealing Biles inquiring about the status of an inquiry regarding her floor routine score. The video was provided to Jordan Chiles, whose legal team submitted it to the Swiss Federal Tribunal as part of her appeal to retain her bronze medal.
In the footage, Biles is seen asking Team USA coach Cecile Landi if an inquiry had been submitted about her score, questioning, “Is he asking?” in reference to Landi’s husband and co-coach, Laurent. Landi confirmed, “He said he did,” but later informed Biles that the inquiry was not sent. The conversation continued as Landi asked her husband about Chiles, “What about Jordan? You want to try?”
Biles finished just 0.033 points behind Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade in the women’s individual floor final, earning a silver medal. Had the inquiry been processed successfully, Biles would have likely secured enough points for gold. In response to the video, Biles tweeted, “(H)onestly not a big deal for me. Rebecca had a better floor anyways. Upsetting how it wasn’t processed but I’m not mad at the results (sic).” She also expressed her support for Chiles, saying, “But justice for Jordan. ya hear me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Chiles, who performed last among the nine gymnasts, initially scored 13.666, placing her fifth behind Andrade, Biles, and Romania’s Ana Bărbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who both scored 13.700. Chiles’ score was elevated to 13.766 after Landi submitted an inquiry following her routine, which bumped her into the bronze medal position. The video showed Landi stating “Inquiry for Jordan” twice before the one-minute window for score appeals closed.
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation later filed an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), contesting the timing of Chiles’ inquiry, which they claimed was submitted four seconds after the designated window. CAS ultimately ruled that the inquiry was submitted late, reinstating Chiles’ initial score and removing her from the podium.
Consequently, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) amended the results accordingly before handing over the final decisions to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Chiles was stripped of her bronze medal, which was subsequently awarded to Bărbosu during a ceremony held in Bucharest on August 16. In a bid to overturn the CAS ruling, Chiles’ attorneys filed a formal appeal on Monday.
Required Reading
- Jordan Chiles appeals to Swiss court over fight for Olympic gymnastics bronze medal
- Jordan Chiles, in an Olympic gymnastics comedy of errors, gets another raw deal
- IOC’s handling of the Jordan Chiles ruling is disturbing and shameful
- Why did Jordan Chiles’ score change after floor exercise? Explaining gymnastics’ inquiry process
(Photo: Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)
