Will Jordan Chiles lose her bronze medal? Why Romania protested floor exercise result in Olympic gymnastics

Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles placed silver and bronze, respectively, in the floor exercise final at the 2024 Paris Games — or so the U.S. gymnasts thought. But the results in the event sparked an ongoing controversy.

Chiles' initial score placed her outside of medal contention, but a successful inquiry by her coach immediately after her performance increased her point total. That allowed Chiles to leapfrog the two Romanian gymnasts ahead of her and claim third place.

After the event ended on Aug. 5, both Romanian gymnasts and public figures were vocal about what they viewed as an unfair turn of events. Even with the Olympics closing ceremony approaching, it's clear the women's gymnastics drama won't end there.

Here's everything you need to know about Romania's protests and their impact on Chiles' third-place finish.

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Why Romania protested Olympic floor exercise result

As Chiles received the news of the score change that pushed her into the bronze-medal spot at the floor exercise final on Aug. 5, Barbosu, who was already holding a Romanian flag to celebrate, realized her podium dreams were shot. 

Barbosu's teammate, Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, also filed an inquiry in the final but did not see her score changed as a result. She received a 0.1 point deduction because her heel allegedly touched out of bounds during her routine.

After finishing in fifth, Maneca-Voinea voiced her disappointment in the results. In Romanian, she said: "The girl in third place...her landings were a bit lower...I think she may have stepped out of bounds...I had a routine that was much better than hers...what happened was a very weird thing."

Additionally, Mihai Covaliu, president of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee, sent a letter of protest to the International Gymnastics Federation after the event.

In the letter, Covaliu addresses International Gymnastics Federation president Morinari Watanabe, asking him "to order the re-analysis by the decision-making factors of the case of the Romanian athlete Sabrina Maneca-Voinea regarding the score given to the execution of the exercise in the floor final."

Team Romania 🇹🇩 Press Release

Mihai Covaliu, yesterday sent a letter of protest to the International Gymnastics Federation, addressed directly to the president Morinari Watanabe, for the reanalysis of the inquiry of Sabrina Voinea Maneca's floor exercise. pic.twitter.com/GfLfm67BFN

— GYMeme (@IzbasaG) August 6, 2024

Romanian prime minister Marcel Ciolacu also commented on the situation, saying he will not be attending the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics in protest.

"I have decided not to attend the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics after the scandalous situation in gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in an dishonorable manner. To withdraw a medal earned through honest effort based on a protest that neither the coaches nor top technicians understand is totally unacceptable,” Ciolacu said on Facebook, as translated by Romania Insider.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled on Aug. 10 that Chiles' original score should be reinstated, as Chiles' inquiry was filed four seconds late on the day of the competition. Team USA had one minute after the end of Chiles' routine to submit their appeal. Maneca-Voinea's appeal was rejected by CAS.

After the CAS decision, Chiles posted on her Instagram story that she would be taking a mental health break from social media as a result of the ongoing controversy connected to her bronze medal.

"I am taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health thank you," Chiles wrote.

MORE: USA Olympic gymnastics results

IOC decision on Jordan Chiles' bronze medal

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Aug. 11 that the bronze medal would be reallocated from Chiles to Romania's Ana Barbosu following the CAS ruling on Chiles' score.

Within the statement, the IOC shared that it has been in touch with Romania about a reallocation ceremony and reached out to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) to discuss the return of the medal.

Here is the statement in full:

It’s official: The IOC will have Jordan Chiles return the bronze medal and award it to Ana Barbosu.

Statement we received ⬇️#Paris2024| #ArtisticGymnastics pic.twitter.com/y1cZbIjmCx

— Gymnastics Now (@Gymnastics_Now) August 11, 2024

The USOPC announced its intent to appeal the CAS ruling soon afterward, saying in its statement: "We are committed to pursuing an appeal to ensure that Jordan Chiles receives the recognition she deserves. We remain dedicated to supporting her as an Olympic champion and will continue to work diligently to resolve this matter swiftly and fairly."

Breaking: USOPC to appeal CAS ruling on Jordan Chiles. pic.twitter.com/CQANoZdNd1

— Christine Brennan (@cbrennansports) August 11, 2024

Later on Aug. 11, USA Gymnastics released a statement indicating that it had obtained and submitted conclusive video evidence that Landi had submitted her appeal to judges within the one-minute limit imposed by FIG.

"USA Gymnastics on Sunday formally submitted a letter and video evidence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport," USA Gymnastics' statement read, "conclusively establishing that Head Coach Cecile Landi's request to file an inquiry was submitted 47 seconds after the publishing of the score, within the 1-minute deadline required by FIG rule."

Nadia Comaneci criticizes Olympic gymnastics judges

After the floor event final, famed Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci, most well known for scoring the first perfect 10 in Olympic women's gymnastics history, was ctive on social media about the controversy. 

She responded to a post on X about Barbosu being bumped down after Chiles' score change, saying "I can't believe we play with athletes mental health and emotions like this...let's protect them."

Additionally, Comaneci was vocal about what she saw as a scoring mistake in Maneca-Voinea's routine, twice posting videos of the gymnast's heel apparently not touching the out-of-bounds area during her floor exercise.

I don’t see the heel touching down.. do you? #sabrinavoinea pic.twitter.com/KZzmj5kcoD

— Nadia Comaneci (@nadiacomaneci10) August 6, 2024

How did Jordan Chiles win bronze in the floor exercise?

Initially, Chiles earned a score of 13.666 after her floor exercise. The score placed her in fifth, behind both Romanians and out of medal range. 

One of the gymnast's leaps — a move called the Gogean, after Romanian gymnast Gina Gogean — was given a C value, worth 0.30 points. Former Olympian Laure Hernandez explained on the NBC broadcast that Chiles' team felt the move was not scored properly, so they submitted an inquiry.

An inquiry is when a gymnast and/or their team can challenge the score given by the judges. It must be submitted between the time the gymnast's final score is posted and the end of the next gymnast's exercise.

The judges accepted the inquiry and ended up making a change, increasing the C value to a D value and adding 0.10 points to Chiles' final score. Both Romanians marked 13.700 on their routines, and the inquiry allowed Chiles to jump both of them into bronze medal territory.

MORE: Jordan Chiles floor routine score, explained

Floor exercise standings

Note: These standings reflect the scores as of the end of competition on Aug. 5.