Despite an ongoing battle with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles still physically owns her bronze medal from the 2024 Paris Games, she confirmed to Candace Parker in a podcast episode released Tuesday.
Speaking on Parker's podcast The Trophy Room, Chiles said she has come a long way and still feels like she won a bronze medal, even if the official results for the event show otherwise.
"Whatever happens with the bronze, it's still a bronze in my head," Chiles said. "It's still a bronze in my heart. I still have the medal if anybody is asking.
"I can't really continue on my life with having something so small but so big in the world carry in my heart for the rest of my life. I can't let that happen," she continued. "So now I'm enjoying life. I'm at UCLA. I'm doing everything that I can. I get to enjoy the support now.''
The gymnast said that though so many fans were sending her love and support last summer, she had a difficult time accepting it because she felt like she didn't deserve it. Now, however, "I love it. Thank you guys all for the support. Thank you guys for always being there. Thank you guys for giving me this ability to enjoy my sport again, enjoy competing again, and enjoy being able to stand on my own two feet and be proud of what I've accomplished."
She concluded by saying she will "continue to fight," but she can only put aside so much mental space and anguish for this battle. So she will instead remind herself of what she has accomplished already and let that guide her.
Watch those comments, starting at 25:00, below:
Chiles initially ranked fifth in August's women's individual floor event, but a successful last-minute challenge from her coach Cecile Landi raised her score one-tenth of a point and bumped her up to third, knocking Romania's Ana Bărbosu to fourth. In response, the Romanian Gymnastics Federation then filed an appeal with CAS, claiming Landi's challenge happened outside the allowed one-minute window and was thus void.
CAS later ruled in favor of Bărbosu, who not long after received a medal of her own and whose name is listed as the Bronze recipient on the official Olympics website. Chiles has since appealed the ruling and the dispute is currently ongoing. She initially told the TODAY Show in November 2024 that she was still in possession of the medal.
In any event, it's good to see Chiles is keeping her head up and remembering that, no matter what happens, she's still a gold medalist—she and her USA Gymnastics teammates won the team all-around—and she's still that girl.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jordan Chiles Confirms She Still Owns Bronze Medal After Olympics Controversy.
