(NEW YORK) — Simone Biles is standing behind Team USA teammate and fellow gymnast Jordan Chiles after the bronze medal Chiles won in the floor exercise final at the 2024 Paris Olympics was stripped from her by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, following a challenge by Romania.
Speaking to People in an interview published Monday, Biles said she has been doing everything possible to support Chiles amid the fallout from the medal controversy earlier this month.
“We’ve been FaceTiming, texting, just being girls,” Biles told the outlet. “I did talk to her on one of the days, and I was like, ‘You know what, Jordan, you have to feel all these feels. Don’t let these emotions stop you. This will be the healthiest way to get all of this out.'”
Initially, Chiles finished fifth in the individual floor exercise at the Paris Games, only to be moved up to the bronze medal spot when her coaches appealed the scoring of one of the elements in her routine. The change moved her up from fifth to third, leaping over two Romanian gymnasts — including Ana Barbosu, who had already begun celebrating her bronze medal finish.
The International Gymnastics Federation awarded Barbosu third place after the Court of Arbitration for Sport voided the appeal made by Chiles’ coach at the event, with CAS saying Chiles’ score was “raised after the conclusion of the one-minute deadline.” In saying the challenge came too late, the CAS reinstated the incorrect 13.666 score.
Biles told People on Monday that “at the end of the day,” Chiles is “still that girl” and she will continue to support and seek justice for her.
“We saw what you did,” Biles said of her teammate. “And it’s an unfortunate circumstance because something like this has never happened before and it’s truly a shame, but we wish all three girls could get the medal and unfortunately in gymnastics that’s not the case.”
She continued, “Do we think they did the correct procedures to come to this ruling? No. That’s really why we want that justice for Jordan and why we’re going to keep supporting her and uplifting her.”
Meanwhile, Chiles has since broken her silence regarding the dispute, sharing her disappointment in a statement posted on Instagram on Aug. 15.
“I have no words,” she wrote in part at the time. “This decision feels unjust and comes as a significant blow, not just to me, but to everyone who has championed my journey.”
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