Romanian gymnast Sabrina Maneca-Voinea's floor-exercise routine at the Olympic Games in Paris could be reconsidered by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) following several requests for a clarification lodged on August 6, including one from former Romanian Olympic champion Nadia Comaneci.
A revision in the scoring of the competition on August 5 boosted American Jordan Chiles into third, while both Maneca-Voinea and fellow Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu were left outside the medals.
Chiles and her coaches filed an inquiry about the difficulty component of her score immediately after the competition ended, and when it was accepted by the judges, she moved up to bronze. Maneca-Voinea also lodged an appeal over her mark, saying she had been unfairly penalized. But her appeal failed.
The revision of Chiles' score caused an uproar on the Romanian team and prompted Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu to declare that he would not attend the closing ceremony, while Romanian gymnastics legend Comaneci lashed out on X.
"I can’t believe we play with athletes' mental health and emotions like this," she said.
Comaneci told RFE/RL that numerous videos and requests had been sent to the FIG asking for a clarification of the deduction Maneca-Voinea received for stepping out of bounds.
"You can't see it," Comaneci said, referring to the moment when judges assessed that she stepped out of bounds after a tumbling run. "I don't think [the FIG] can ignore it. Clarity is needed for Sabrina and all of us."
Comaneci also published a video on social media showing that Maneca-Voinea's foot did not cross the line.
Ciolacu, meanwhile, said viewers worldwide were shocked when Chiles' score was revised, giving her the bronze and said it highlighted that “somewhere in the system of organizing this competition, something is wrong."
He said on his Social Democratic Party's Facebook page that he made the decision not to attend the closing ceremony "after the scandalous situation in gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in an absolutely dishonorable way."
The president of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee, Mihai Covaliu, also sent a letter of protest to the FIG asking for reconsideration of Voinea-Maneca's appeal. Covaliu’s letter, quoted by News.ro., said the incident had damaged the image of international gymnastics and affected athletes' mental health.
The president of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation, Carmencita Constantin, also sent a letter to the head of the FIG in which she asks for explanations for Voinea-Manaca's alleged step out of bounds, saying it can be proved that it was a judging error.