Simone Biles says ‘not a big deal’ after video shows scoring inquiry snafu might have cost her gold
Simone Biles is not worried about potentially missing out on an additional gold medal over another gymnastics scoring inquiry snafu in the floor exercise at the Paris Olympics.
Video from a camera crew following Biles at the Paris Games for the Netflix documentary series “Simone Biles: Rising” was given to Jordan Chiles, whose lawyers submitted it Monday to the Swiss Federal Tribunal as part of Chiles’ appeal to keep her bronze medal. The video also showed Biles asking Team USA coach Cecile Landi if an inquiry was submitted over her floor routine score.
Biles asked Landi, “Is he asking?” referring to Landi’s husband and co-coach, Laurent, submitting an inquiry. Landi replied, “He said he did.” Laurent then spoke to Landi in French before Landi turned to Biles and said, “They didn’t send it.”
Landi then asked her husband, “What about Jordan? You want to try?”
Biles finished 0.033 points behind Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade to win a silver medal in the women’s individual floor final. If the inquiry was successful, Biles would have earned enough points to be awarded the gold.
“(H)onestly not a big deal for me,” Biles tweeted in response to the video. “Rebecca had a better floor anyways. upsetting how it wasn’t processed but I’m not mad at the results (sic).”
Biles added: “But justice for Jordan. ya hear me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Chiles, the last of the nine gymnasts to perform her floor routine, received an initial score of 13.666, placing her fifth behind Andrade, Biles and Romania’s Ana Bărbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who each scored a 13.700. (Bărbosu was ahead of Maneca-Voinea for having a higher execution score, meaning the judges thought she hit a cleaner routine.)
Following Chiles’ routine, Landi submitted an inquiry, which the judges accepted and thus raised Chiles’ score to 13.766, bumping her into the bronze position. The video submitted Monday showed Landi saying, “Inquiry for Jordan,” twice before the one-minute window to appeal scores closed.
The Romanian Gymnastics Federation filed an appeal to CAS challenging the timeliness of Chiles’ inquiry, saying it was submitted four seconds after the one-minute window.
CAS ruled that Chiles’ inquiry was raised late and her initial score should be reinstated, effectively kicking her off the podium. The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) altered the results to reflect that before giving the International Olympic Committee (IOC) the final say on who would be awarded the bronze medal.
The IOC stripped Chiles of her bronze and reallocated it to Bărbosu, who received her medal at a ceremony in Bucharest on Aug. 16. Chiles’ attorneys filed a formal appeal Monday to overturn CAS’ ruling.
