Image Credit: Corbis via Getty Images
Jordan Chiles’ coach is setting the record straight.
Cecile Canqueteau-Landi congratulated Chiles and Simone Biles on their Olympic wins in an Instagram post on Tuesday, August 6, while also responding to a user who accused Chiles, 23, and her team of cheating to secure bronze in the floor exercise final.
“I shouldn’t have to explain but I will ONCE,” Canqueteau-Landi, 44, wrote. “Jordan’s highest possible [start value] on floor is a 5.9—At quals and team finals she received a 5.8 and we didn’t question it because we saw that not all the elements were completed.”
“Being placed 5th with nothing to lose, I sent the inquiry so I wouldn’t regret not asking. I didn’t think it would be accepted and, to my surprise, it was.”
Gymnastics: 2024 Summer Olympics: Team USA and silver medalist Simone Biles, coach Cecile Canqueteau-Landi and bronze medalist Jordan Chiles victorious following the Women’s floor exercise final at Bercy Arena.Paris, France 8/5/2024CREDIT: Simon Bruty (Photo by Simon Bruty/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)(Set Number: X164574 TK1)
Cecile—who was an Olympian herself and competed in the 1996 Games in Atlanta—made it clear she was just doing her job as a coach and that everything happened above board, emphasizing that Chiles “didn’t steal anything from anyone,” as she “simply did [her] job and fought for” the athlete.
She continued, “Do I feel bad for the Romanian athlete? Of course I do! It was so sad and heartbreaking to see, but it is the sport!”
Cecile clarified again while concluding her post, “You don’t have to like it, but you do have to respect the outcome and more importantly respect Jordan and not drag her down because you disagree. She EARNED that bronze medal.”
The coach’s explanation comes amid ongoing controversy surrounding the series of events.
During Monday’s competition, Team Romania submitted an inquiry about Sabrina Maneca-Voinea’s performance, but her score remained unchanged. Mihai Covaliu, president of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee, sent a letter of protest to the Gymnastics Federation in a Tuesday Facebook post, asking for Maneca-Voinea’s score to be reviewed again.
Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu later announced he would be skipping the Paris Olympics closing ceremony in protest. “I decided not to attend the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics, following the scandalous situation in gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in an absolutely dishonorable manner,” he wrote via Facebook on Tuesday.
“To withdraw a medal earned for honest work on the basis of an appeal, which neither the coaches nor the top technicians understand, is totally unacceptable!”
