Jordan Chiles Tears Up Talking About 'Hard Year' Since Losing Bronze Medal — but Reveals She Still Has It

Mar. 15, 2025

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Jordan Chilesis sharing more about the “very, very difficult time” she’s had since she wasstripped of her bronze at the Paris Olympics— but reveals that she still has the physical medal.

As the 23-year-old Olympiancontinues her legal battle to retain her bronze medalfrom the gymnastics floor final, Chiles checked in withHoda Kotbon theTodayshowon Monday, Nov. 11 to expand on how she’s processing it all.

“Honestly, it’s been really really hard just to comprehend everything that’s been happening,” the gymnast said. “I’ve been able to finally now feel comfortable in a way to talk about what has been happening.”

She continued, “I feel like I recently have been trying to tell myself I’ve been okay the past four, five months, and it’s honestly been a very, very difficult time.”

The controversy erupted following Chiles’ routine, after her coach successfully challenged the judges' scoring decision, pushing her up to a bronze-medal finish behind Brazilian gold medalistRebeca Andradeand Chiles' teammateSimone Biles, who took silver.

Then, it was later determined that Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu should be awarded the bronze after the gymnastics governing board ruled that the inquiry into Chiles’ score had come too late.

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Since then, back-and-forth of petitions and appeals between the Romanian and American Olympic committees, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) have been ongoing — all of which have left the gymnast exhausted.

“It’s hard to tell yourself that everything is going to be fine when you feel like you literally didn’t do anything wrong,” Chiles said onToday. “Everything was very right, everything was in the time that it needed to be, and for them to come back and say that it was four seconds late when we’ve had proof we’ve had everything that can really show that everything is right."

She added, “So I think now it’s just the support that’s been around me I’m like, ‘Okay, I can’t control anything that’s happening on the outside, I can only control what my truth is and I know what the truth is and I know that we were right in everything that we were doing.' ”

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Still, not having closure on the controversy is bittersweet for the athlete, even though she told Kotb she still has the actual medal.

“And with this floor medal, it was just like, wow, I never expected myself to even make a floor final, I never expected myself to come back with a medal, none of that.”

Chiles,who has alluded in the past that her race played a role in the incident, also noted that her achievement was historic.

“It was an all-Black podium that was history made, that was something I’m very proud to be a part of, that was something that I hope people can see,” she said.

Chiles added, “That is something I’ll always remember.”

source: people.com