First All-Black Gymnastics Podium Short Lived Amid Olympic Judging Controversy

American gymnast Jordan Chiles is embroiled in a controversial situation following her performance at the Olympic Games in Paris.

In a series of appeals, Chiles’ fifth-placed performance was elevated to third after complaints by her coach in the floor exercise final. The Romanian Gymnastics Federation then appealed against this decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, alleging that the coach’s appeal came four seconds after the one-minute deadline. This was upheld, thus reinstating Romanian gymnast Ana Bărbosu to the bronze medal position.

USA Gymnastics has since appealed the appeal, citing video evidence that Chiles’ coach had met the one-minute deadline.

However, while she held the bronze medal spot, Chiles made comments pertaining to the ethnicity of all three athletes on the podium.

“In my head I think the last thing I really thought was, ‘We just made history,’ because it was an all-Black podium. I was in awe. I still have no words. If you ask me, I still am like… It’s crazy,” she told Teen Vogue.

“I think it also gives recognition to knowing that while the diversity in our sport is getting a lot better and people are understanding that our world is still going to be seen in black and white, it doesn’t matter,” she added. “But if we can express ourselves… then it’ll be easier to hopefully understand that. It’s not just going to be a once-in-a-lifetime thing. [This moment] is always going to be known.”

Later, her medal was withdrawn, prompting some on social media to point out the irony in prior comments about how an “all-Black podium” is “here to stay.”

Many on social media offered their own perspective on the controversy.