BUCHAREST, Romania — Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu received her Olympic bronze medal during a ceremony in the capital Bucharest on Friday that marked the end of a whirlwind of controversy after the medal was first awarded to American gymnast Jordan Chiles but then revoked.
“I didn't expect the medal to be so heavy, but I would wear it day and night if this is what it takes to have it,” Barbosu said after the ceremony.
The medal was reassigned to Barbosu after a Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling last week overturned an appeal filed by U.S. team coach Cecile Landi during the Aug. 5 floor exercise final in Paris that had bumped Chiles to third place and pushed Barbosu into fourth.
Chiles was initially awarded bronze on appeal and participated in the medal ceremony after the competition.
That decision caused an uproar in Romania, historically a gymnastics powerhouse, and prompted its gymnastics federation to request a review of the U.S. team’s appeal procedure. CAS ultimately ruled in favor of Barbosu, saying the U.S. team had filed its appeal four seconds after the one-minute deadline.
Speaking to reporters on Friday after receiving her medal, Barbosu said the resolution of the controversy “was possible with the help of the federation and the law firm who did not give up on us athletes and fought for us.”
“I am very happy to have this medal and I hope to represent Romania at the highest level and bring home more medals,” she said.
Romania has long been a gymnastics superpower but has failed to make a breakthrough in recent years. Barbosu's result gives Romania its first women's Olympic gymnastics medal since the 2012 London Games. USA Gymnastics has said it will continue to work to help Chile retain its medal.
Consultations are a common part of gymnastics competitions, where athletes or coaches ask judges to review a routine to ensure that elements are scored correctly. Scores may be adjusted up or down based on a consultation.
But the Paris Games affair has been painful for all the athletes involved, exacerbated by a wave of online abuse directed at the gymnasts. Chiles, who has received some racist comments on social media that she has called “incorrect and extremely hurtful,” said Thursday that the decision to strip her of the bronze was “unfair.”
Barbosu said Friday that the medal controversy was “sad” and that “we hoped that the referees and the Olympic staff would do their job properly.”
Still, she said, she was sending “good thoughts” to the American gymnasts.
“I think about them even though I won the medal today,” he said.
