Okay, let’s get some things straight here - from a former gymnast who actually knows what she’s talking about.
First: Jordan’s coaches didn’t do anything wrong. Coaches frequently submit inquiries when a gymnast isn’t awarded their maximum possible start value, particularly when it’s not clear why.
Second: neither did Jordan. She’s said herself she didn’t even know the inquiry had been submitted. She didn’t ask for it, she didn’t cheat, and she certainly didn’t steal anyone’s medal.
Third: inquiries are always announced. As soon as this one was announced, the Romanian coach should have told her athletes not to celebrate until the inquiry was addressed. Not to mention, the athletes themselves should have realized this and held off. The entire celebration debacle was completely avoidable.
Fourth: in my opinion - and I’m basing this on watching the slow-motion replay and understanding how gymnastics scoring works - the judges made a mistake. Jordan did not complete the skill. Her feet did not make it all the way around to the 1.5 turn mark. Her inquiry should have been rejected and her score unchanged.
Fifth: Sabrina did not go out of bounds. Her heel did not touch the floor outside the line. However inquiries can only be submitted on the difficulty score, and neutral deductions are not considered part of this score. This may be why the initial Romanian inquiry was rejected, though it’s unclear. Either way, this was another judging error.
Lastly: rules are rules, whether you like them or not. 1:04 is more than the 1:00 time limit for submitting an inquiry. Yet again, this is on the judges. They shouldn’t have allowed the inquiry to proceed in the first place.
HOWEVER… none of this is Jordan’s fault, nor is it the fault of her coaches or the Romanian gymnasts or coaches. If you’re mad, blame the judges. But DO NOT take it out on the athletes or the coaches.
I hope the IOC allows them both to receive medals. The athletes shouldn’t be punished for the errors of the judges.
