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Jordan Chiles from Team USA in Paris
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Jordan Chiles was interviewed for the first time about the withdrawal of her Olympic bronze medal
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The gymnast said she struggled with the decision and believes it had more to do with her “skin color” than her merits.
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Chiles said she had lost her “love for sport” after the verdict
Jordan Chiles spoke emotionally about her experience at the Paris Olympics in her first interview since being stripped of her bronze medal.
The 23-year-old Olympian spoke candidly at the Forbes Power Women’s Summit on Wednesday, September 11, where she was asked about the controversial decision to strip her of her bronze medal in the floor exercise final and award it to Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu.
“The most important thing that was taken from me was the recognition of who I am. Not just my sport, but the person I am,” Chiles said. “For me, everything that happened is not about the medal, but about the color of my skin.”
Chiles said she felt “like everything had been taken away from her” amid the complicated 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).
“I felt like I lost and lost love with the sport in 2018,” Chiles revealed, adding, “I felt like I was really left in the dark.”
Related: Jordan Chiles breaks her silence after being stripped of her Olympic bronze medal: “This decision feels unfair”