Aly Raisman speaks out on Jordan Chiles Olympic medal controversy

‘This is just so heartbreaking and I’m just so gutted for Jordan,’ Raisman says

Aly Raisman speaks out on Jordan Chiles Olympic medal controversy (Getty Images)

Aly Raisman is the latest person to speak out about Team USA’s Jordan Chiles being asked to return her bronze medal after the Paris 2024 Olympics.

During an appearance on Today on August 12, former Olympic gymnast Raisman explained how badly she felt for Chiles amid the bronze medal controversy. “This is just so heartbreaking and I’m just so gutted for Jordan. I can’t even imagine what this past week has been like for Jordan and the other athletes involved,” she said.

Chiles initially placed in fifth after completing her gymnastics floor routine on August 5, until her coach submitted an inquiry about her score – increasing it enough to earn a spot on the podium alongside Biles and Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade. The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) voided the inquiry appeal because it was submitted four seconds outside the one-minute window allowed by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG).

The CAS ruling meant that Romania’s Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea remained in third and fourth place, respectively, with Chiles back down to fifth. However, they left the final ranking decision to the FIG, who determined it was up to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to decide on the winner of the bronze medal.

On August 11, the IOC officially confirmed the decision to strip Chiles of the medal and award it to Barbosu. In a statement, the committee said: “The IOC will reallocate the bronze medal to Ana Barbosu (Romania). We are in touch with the NOC of Romania to discuss the reallocation ceremony and with USOPC regarding the return of the bronze medal.”

Speaking to Today, Raisman described the IOC’s decision as “so unfair” and called on the committee to award Chiles the bronze medal. “I think it’s so unfair. It’s so cruel,” the former Team USA athlete said. “I don’t think that Jordan should have to give her medal back. The IOC has given more than one medal before, and I think that they should do that now.”

The gymnast noted that the issue first sparked because of a mistake within the judges panel, and claimed that there should be a different solution that doesn’t affect the athletes.

“It’s unfair, I just can’t even believe that we’re in this situation,” Raisman said. “As an athlete, we trust the process. We trust that the rules are in place, that there’s been a lot of thought behind it, and that the rules are there to be fair. Going forward, we need to understand how this is happening and how to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

She continued: “I think that the organizations that are in charge of this need to really look at the athletes’ mental health and how much this is affecting them, and how cruel it is to take a medal away from someone.”

Raisman wasn’t the only person to speak out about Chiles’ medal controversy, as fellow Team USA gymnasts Simone Biles and Suni Lee shared their support for Chiles. Lee took her Instagram Story to share her disappointment with the Olympic judges, writing: “All this talk about the athlete, what about the judges?? Completely unacceptable. This is awful and I’m gutted for Jordan.”

“I got your back forever Jo,” she added. “[You] have all my flowers and you will ALWAYS be an Olympic champion.”

Meanwhile, Biles shared an Instagram post of the two gymnasts embracing. “Sending you so much love Jordan,” she wrote. “Keep your chin up olympic champ! We love you!”

Following the CAS ruling, Chiles took to Instagram to announce she was taking a break from social media “for my mental health.”