The Romanian Gymnastics Federation filed an appeal claiming that Sabrina Maneca-Voinea never stepped out of bounds, despite being deducted points
The battle for bronze continues.
As Jordan Chiles and USA Gymnastics continue their fight to reclaim her medal in floor from the Paris Olympics — after it was stripped and given to Ana Barbosu based on a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport — a second Romanian gymnast has filed an appeal in an effort to gain the medal.
On Monday, Aug. 26, the Romanian Gymnastics Federation said in a statement that an appeal has been filed with the Swiss Federal Tribunal on behalf of Sabrina Maneca-Voinea after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) denied her complaint from earlier this month that she was incorrectly scored.
Maneca-Voinea and the Romanian federation are arguing that the back-and-forth between Chiles’ and Barbosu’s appeals would be irrelevant — and that Maneca-Voinea would be deemed the clear winner — if the judges hadn’t inaccurately deducted 0.10 points from her, claiming she stepped out of bounds.
According to USA Today, replay footage shows that Maneca-Voinea did not step out of bounds during the final. Had Maneca-Voinea not been deducted the 0.10 points for the inaccurate penalty, she would have scored 13.800, putting her ahead of both Chiles and Barbosu.
The CAS rejected the Romanian federation’s appeal earlier this month and said the judgment “cannot be reviewed,” per USA Today.
“The decision as to whether a 0.1 deduction was appropriate is a textbook example of a ‘field of play’ decision, one that does not permit the arbitrators to substitute their views for that of the referee,” the CAS said. “It warrants the non-interference of CAS as it entails the exercise of judgment by the referee, based on expertise in the ‘field of play.’ ”
Now, the Romanian federation is taking their appeal beyond CAS to the Swiss Federal Tribunal in an attempt to raise Maneca-Voinea’s score and put her in third place. USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee have said they also intend to file an appeal with the Swiss Federal Tribunal.
During the Aug. 5 final, Chiles (who performed her routine last) initially earned a score of 13.666, which would have left her in fifth place, while Barbosu and Maneca-Voinea both finished with 13.700. After the score came in, Chiles’ coach Cecile Landi submitted an inquiry arguing that the judges hadn’t given proper consideration to the difficulty level of her routine in the initial score.
But soon after, the Romanian Olympic committee argued that Landi hadn’t submitted her inquiry in time, claiming she was four seconds late. The CAS agreed with this appeal and Chiles’ score was reverted back to 13.666.
Chiles’ case for the bronze — led by the USOPC — now hinges on claims of “critical errors” in scoring by both the International Gymnastics Federation and the CAS’ appeal process, as well as video evidence that Landi was not late to submit her appeal.
