(Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
Come through, Team USA solidarity! Simone Biles and Sunisa Lee speak out about Jordan Chiles‘ Olympic floor exercise score change. Both gymnasts showed their teammate support amid the possibility the International Gymnastics Federation could strip Chiles of her bronze medal.
Amid enjoying European sights and sharing with fans on IGS, Simone spoke on behalf of Chiles. She shared a photo of herself embracing an emotional Jordan following her bronze win on August 5. Her caption read, “Sending you so much love, Jordan [white heart emoticon]. Keep your chin up, Olympic champ! We love you!”
Additionally, Biles reposted a post from the account Inside Gym that detailed Sunisa Lee’s thoughts on the score change. On her Instagram Story, Lee went IN on the judges, blaming them for this unprecedented change. She shared her comments in addition to reposting a joint statement from the USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (see below).
“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 [yellow heart emoticon]. U have all my flowers and your will ALWAYS be an Olympic champion,” Sunisa Lee wrote.
Monday’s floor exercise competition marked the final event in women’s gymnastics. Ultimately, Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade took home gold, Biles took home silver, and Jordan the bronze. But initially, two Romanian gymnasts —Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea — had tied for third and fourth place with a matching score of 13.700.
Meanwhile, Jordan Chiles had placed fifth with a score of 13.600. One minute and four seconds after the judges posted these scores, the U.S. coach appealed, citing low scoring on Jordan’s difficulty. Coach Celile Landi argued for a score raise of 0.1, and the judges agreed with the appeal, placing Jordan in third place above Ana and Sabrina.
The Romanian Olympic Committee followed with a letter of protest. On Saturday (August 10), the Court of Arbitration (CAS) ruled to void the appeal that won Chiles her bronze medal and revert to the original scoring. This means Jordan is now considered to be in fifth place. The International Gymnastics Federation has yet to announce if they will officially strip Chiles of her medal or offer bronze to all three affected gymnasts.
Following the announcement, Chiles announced a social media break for her “mental health.” Meanwhile, her sister popped off about the CAS ruling, highlighting racism as a reason for the five-day late reversal.
Meanwhile, this is the second time this week Simone Biles has stood up for her teammate in the face of controversy. Speaking to PEOPLE on August 6, Biles defended her decision to clapback at former gymnast MyKayla Skinner for critiquing the “work ethic” of her Olympic teammates Sunisa, Jordan,
Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera.
