Jordan Chiles breaks down in tears on stage after losing Olympic medal: "It's about my skin color"

In her first interview about the retraction of her Olympic medal, American gymnast Jordan Chiles fought back tears.

The 23-year-old Olympian, known as "Chick," was involved in one of the biggest scandals of the Paris Games when she won bronze in the women's floor exercise final after American coaches requested a score review.

After the American finished her routine, Ana Barbosu of Romania initially scored higher than Chiles. However, after judges reviewed the footage, they changed the score and placed Chiles in third place, causing controversy and backlash from Romanians.

On the last day of the Olympics, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled that the Chiles appeal was submitted past the one-minute deadline, and changed her score to drop her back into fifth place. The next day, on Aug. 11, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) determined that Chiles must return the medal.

This week, during a panel at the Forbes Power Women Summit 2024 on Wednesday, the gymnast sobbed noticeably when she was asked about the incident.

"For me, the events that have transpired are not just about the medal, but also my skin color," Chiles stated.

Chiles previously stated that she was subjected to "racially motivated attacks" on social media on Aug. 15. The bronze medal win by Chiles marked the first time in Olympic history that a gymnastics podium featured three black competitors.

"The journey to becoming an athlete has been a series of events that have led me to this point, and I feel like I've lost everything."

In 2018, Chiles made her senior international debut and advanced toward her goal of competing at the Tokyo Olympics. However, despite her success, she admitted that she "lost the love of the sport" due to an abusive coach, whom she did not name.

"I felt like I was back in 2018 when I lost the love of the sport. I've lost it again. I just felt like there wasn't much support from people I thought could help me in that situation. I felt like I was left in the dark," she said.

Chiles stated that she was in a situation where she was being emotionally and verbally abused by the coach, and she lacked the ability to speak up or be heard.

In November 2021, Chiles publicly accused an unnamed abusive coach of calling her "fat" and criticizing her diet during an episode of "Peace of Mind with Taraji" on Facebook Watch. Since then, Chiles has been training at the World Gymnastics Centre in Texas, which is owned by the family of Simone Biles.

Despite being ordered to return her Olympic bronze medal, Chiles maintains that it is rightfully hers.

Chiles declared that he made history and will always continue to do so, as he rightfully followed the rules and his coach did the same. After the Olympics in August, USA Today reported that Chiles and the rest of the U.S. Olympic team had no intention of returning the medal and are still appealing the IOC's decision.

Chiles was reinstated as the third-place finisher after Biles joined the appeal effort.

"Biles stated that they do not believe the procedures were followed correctly to arrive at the ruling, and this is why they want justice for Jordan and will continue to support and uplift her."

The judges who scored the gymnastics event have come under international scrutiny due to the controversy. On Aug. 15, the Center of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) released a joint statement condemning the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and the judging crew for the outcome.

"The ad-hoc panel of the CAS stated in a release that if the FIG had implemented a mechanism or arrangement, a significant amount of heartache could have been prevented. The panel expressed the hope that the FIG would take responsibility for this case and apply the consequences to the three extraordinary athletes and their support personnel, as well as other athletes and their support personnel, to ensure that such an incident never occurs again."

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