Jordan Chiles has made the decision to take a break from social media after her Olympics medal appears to have been taken away from her following a court’s decision. “I am taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you,” she told fans on Instagram after posting a simple Story that just featured four broken heart emojis.
She was also supported by her teammate Simone Biles, who wrote: “Sending you so much love Jordan,” alongside a snap of the two at the competitino.
“Keep your chin up Olympic champ! We love you!”
Jordan won her first-ever individual Olympic medal on Monday, August 5 when she competed in the individual floor event. The 23-year-old finished fifth with 13.666 but her coach, Cecile Landi, submitted a complaint that her difficulty level score was too low, and the judges accepted the inquiry.
The difficulty level was then upped to 5.90 and the score to 13.766.
The increased score moved Jordan from fifth to third, ahead of Romanian gymnasts Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea.
In response, the Romanian Olympic committee protested the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) who have now ruled to reinstate Jordan’s original score of 13.666 which puts her back into fifth place. Ana Barbosu is now in third after receiving a score of 13.700.
“The initial score of 13.666 given to Ms Jordan Chiles in the final of the women’s Floor exercise shall be reinstated. The Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique shall determine the ranking of the Final of the women’s Floor exercise and assign the medal(s) in accordance with the above decision,” CAS said in their ruling.”
“We are devastated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling regarding women’s floor exercise. The inquiry into the Difficulty Value of Jordan Chiles’ floor exercise routine was filed in good faith and, we believed, in accordance with FIG rules to ensure accurate scoring,” said USA Gymnastics, the ruling body of the sport in America.
They also criticised claims that Jordan had cheated her way to a medal, writing: “Throughout the appeal process, Jordan has been subject to consistent, utterly baseless and extremely hurtful attacks on social media. No athlete should be subject to such treatment.
“We condemn the attacks and those who engage, support or instigate them. We commend Jordan for conducting herself with integrity both on and off the competition floor, and we continue to stand by and support her.”
Coach Landi also broke her silence on Thursday August 8 amid the ongoing inquiry, writing on social media: “Do I feel bad for the Romanian athlete? Of course I do! It was so sad and heartbreaking to see but it is the sport!
“Jordan won this bronze medal and didn’t steal anything from anyone. I simply did my job and fought for my athlete.”