Jordan Chiles has been stripped of a gymnastics bronze medal, but the USOPC says it will appeal

PARIS (AP) — U.S. Olympic officials say they will appeal a court ruling that resulted in American gymnast Jordan Chiles being asked to return the bronze medal she won in the Paris Olympics floor exercise.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) voided an on-floor appeal by Chiles' coach that vaulted her to third, saying the appeal came 4 seconds beyond the 1-minute time limit for scoring inquiries.

The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) said Saturday night it would respect the court's decision and elevate Barbosu to third. The International Olympic Committee confirmed the ruling Sunday, announcing that it was reallocating the bronze from last Monday’s women’s floor final to Romanian Ana Barbosu.

“We firmly believe that Jordan rightfully earned the bronze medal, and there were critical errors in both the initial scoring by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and the subsequent CAS appeal process that need to be addressed,” the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee statement said.

CAS ruled Saturday that Team USA coach Cecile Landi's inquiry to have 0.1 added to Chiles’ score came outside the 1-minute window allowed by the FIG. The CAS ad hoc committee wrote that Landi’s inquiry came 1 minute, 4 seconds after Chiles' initial score was posted.

The IOC said in a statement it will be in touch with the USOPC regarding the return of Chiles' bronze and will work with the Romanian Olympic Committee to discuss a reallocation ceremony honoring Barbosu.

“The initial error occurred in the scoring by FIG, and the second error was during the CAS appeal process, where the USOPC was not given adequate time or notice to effectively challenge the decision,” said the USOPC statement, which was released Sunday.

It was unclear the exact process the appeal would take first. The two potential places the USOPC could take the appeal would be to Switzerland’s highest court, the Swiss Tribunal, or the European Court of Human Rights.

CAS wrote Saturday that the initial finishing order should be restored, with Barbosu third, Romanian Sabrina Maneca-Voinea fourth and Chiles fifth. The organization added the FIG should determine the final ranking “in accordance with the above decision,” but left it up to the federation to decide who would get the medal behind gold winner Rebeca Andrade of Brazil and silver medalist Simone Biles of the U.S.

The FIG said it was the IOC’s call on whether to reallocate the medal. The IOC confirmed Sunday it would respect FIG's decision and seek to have Chiles' medal returned.

The rapid turn of events adds another layer to what has been a difficult few days for all three athletes.

Romanian gymnastics legend and 1976 Olympic champion Nadia Comaneci feared for Barbosu’s mental health because of the wrenching sequence in which she went from bronze medalist to fourth-place finisher.

“I can’t believe we play with athletes mental health and emotions like this… let’s protect them,” Comaneci posted on X earlier in the week.

Comaneci, at the same time, criticized the judges for the way they scored Maneca-Voinea’s routine — the gymnast was docked 0.1 points for stepping out of bounds, but viral replays showed she narrowly stayed inbounds. Comaneci urged the Romanian Olympic Committee to protest, which it did, but CAS denied that appeal.

Chiles hinted at the decision in an Instagram story on Saturday, indicating she is heartbroken and is “taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you.”

Jazmin Chiles, Jordan's sister, said on Instagram that Chiles was stripped of a medal “not because she wasn't good enough. But because the judges failed to give her difficulty and forced an inquiry to be made.”

U.S. teammates offered support to Chiles, a two-time Olympian.

"Sending you so much love Jordan,” American star Simone Biles posted on Instagram. “Keep your chin up ‘Olympic champ’ we love you.”

“All this talk about the athlete, what about the judges?” six-time Olympic medalist Sunisa Lee added on Instagram. “Completely unacceptable, this is awful and I’m gutted for jordan.”

USA Gymnastics said in a statement on Saturday it is “devastated” by the ruling.

“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,” the organization wrote.

Barbosu and Maneca-Voinea were left outside the medals in the floor final after finishing with matching scores of 13.700. Barbosu thought she had won bronze over Maneca-Voinea via a tiebreaker — a higher execution score — and began celebrating with a Romanian flag.

Chiles was the last athlete to compete and initially given a score of 13.666 that placed her fifth, right behind Maneca-Voinea. Landi called for an inquiry on Chiles’ score was announced.

“At this point, we had nothing to lose, so I was like ‘We’re just going to try,‘” Landi said after the awards ceremony. “I honestly didn’t think it was going to happen, but when I heard her scream, I turned around and was like ‘What?’”

Judges awarded the appeal, leapfrogging Chiles past Barbosu and Maneca-Voinea.

Barbosu made it a point after returning home to Romania that she had no problem with Chiles.

“I only want for everybody to be fair, we don’t want to start picking on other athletes of any nationality,” Barbosu told reporters. “We as athletes don’t deserve something like that, we only want to perform as best as we can and to be rewarded based on our performance. The problems lie with the judges, with their calculations and decisions.”

Chiles’ mother, Gina Chiles, called out the critics in a post, writing she was “tired” of the derogatory comments being leveled at Jordan.

“My daughter is a highly decorated Olympian with the biggest heart and a level of sportsmanship that is unmatched,” Gina Chiles posted. “And she’s being called disgusting things.”

The uncertainty also tinges what had been a beautiful moment on the medal stand, when Chiles and Biles knelt to honor Andrade after the Brazilian star won her fourth medal in Paris.

“It was just the right thing to do,” Biles said about a moment that soon went viral, with even the Louvre itself suggesting it might be worthy enough for a spot somewhere in the vicinity of the Mona Lisa.

That memory now carries a complicated and emotional postscript.

Associated Press writer Stephen McGrath and AP Sports Writers Eddie Pells and Graham Dunbar contributed to this report.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

Ana Barbosu, of Romania, competes during the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Two-time U.S. Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles dons her medals as she prepares for photos outside the Nasdaq MarketSite, in New York's Times Square, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Two-time U.S. Olympic gymnast medalist Jordan Chiles shows her medals after ringing the closing bell at the Nasdaq MarketSite, in New York's Times Square, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced a battle of nerves with his Labour Party on Tuesday, winning a parliamentary vote on a contentious decision to cut a payment that helps millions of pensioners pay winter heating bills — but not ending unease about it among his lawmakers.

Starmer says the decision to remove the winter fuel allowance, worth between 200 and 300 pounds ($262 and $393) a year, from all but the poorest retirees is needed because of the dire state of the public finances left by the previous Conservative government.

But the decision to hit people on fixed incomes in one of the government’s first economic moves since winning a landslide election victory in July has caused disquiet in the center-left Labour Party. Seventeen Labour lawmakers backed a call to postpone the cut.

“Tough decisions are unpopular decisions,” Starmer told his Cabinet on Monday, telling ministers that “we have to fix the foundations of our economy and that means tough choices.”

Labour’s large House of Commons majority meant the government easily voted down, by a margin of 348-228, an attempt to overturn the cut. Only one Labour lawmaker voted with the opposition, along with several legislators serving suspensions from the party over a previous rebellion. Many Labour MPs backed the move after expressing doubts, while 53 did not vote. Of these, some had authorized absences while others deliberately abstained.

“It’s my conscience that I cannot vote for these measures," said one, Rachael Maskell.

Treasury chief Rachel Reeves on Monday had urged unity, telling lawmakers, “We stand, we lead and we govern together.”

During the election campaign, Starmer vowed to get the country’s sluggish economy growing and restore frayed public services such as the state-funded National Health Service.

Since winning, he has struck a gloomy note, saying there is a 22 billion pound ($29 billion) “black hole” in the public finances left by the previous government, and warning that “things will get worse” before they get better.

The Conservatives accuse Labour of penalizing vulnerable older people. Conservative leadership candidate Mel Stride said the cut would hit “millions of pensioners … who are on extremely low incomes.”

The cut is expected to reduce the number of pensioners receiving the winter fuel allowance from 11.4 million to 1.5 million. The government argues that pensioners will be better off even with the cut because the state pension, which is indexed to wages and inflation, is due to rise by 460 pounds ($600) next year.

Starmer is also facing criticism over the early release of more than 1,700 inmates to make space in Britain’s overcrowded prisons. Starting Tuesday, some prisoners are being freed after serving 40% of their sentences, rather than the usual 50%. Inmates convicted of serious violence or sexual offenses are not eligible.

Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said the government had no choice because “the bath was in danger of overflowing, and they either had to turn the taps off or they had to let some water out.” But he warned it was likely some of those freed would go on to commit new crimes.

Space is needed partly to accommodate scores of people sentenced over anti-immigrant unrest in August. Starmer, a former public prosecutor, has vowed a tough response to the violence in which crowds attacked police, vandalized businesses and attempted to set fire to a hotel housing asylum-seekers.

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a visit at the National Crime Agency (NCA) headquarters in London, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. (Benjamin Cremel/Pool via AP)