Sabrina Voinea and Romanian Gymnastics Federation file appeal against penalization in floor exercise finals at Paris Olympics

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Aug 27, 2024 02:53 GMT

In a new twist, Romanian gymnast Sabrina Voinea and the Romanian Gymnastics Federation have filed an appeal against the authorities of the Paris Olympics at the Swiss Federal Tribunal of the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Voinea and RGF have appealed against the unjust penalization of her scores during the floor exercise finals of the Paris Olympics.

According to the video footage, Voinea was penalized one-tenth of a point for going out of bounds during the finals of the floor exercise event at the Paris Olympics. This is why even though the scores of Voinea and her compatriot Ana Barbosu were the same, it was only Barbosu who received the bronze medal.

If the penalization had not been done, Sabrina Voinea's total score would have been 13.800, which would have given her the bronze medal instead of Ana Barbosu, who had scored 13.700 in the finals. The Romanian authorities immediately appealed to CAS in this case as well, apart from fighting for the bronze medal which was taken away by Barbosu.

However, CAS turned down the appeal, since her coach did not submit an inquiry about the alleged deduction just after the finals. Despite that, the Romanian authorities have re-appealed for Sabrina Voinea in the Swiss Federal Tribunal.

Apart from the floor exercise finals, Voinea participated in the team all-around finals as well as the balance beam finals. While Romania finished seventh in the team all-around event, Voinea finished a disappointing eighth in the balance beam finals.

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The controversy with Sabrina Voinea and Ana Barbosu explained

Ana Barbosu of Romania performing her routine during the Floor Exercise finals of the Paris Olympics 2024 [Image Source: Getty]

It all began on Aug. 5, 2024. The finals for the women's floor exercise event were being held at the Accor Arena, the main venue for artistic and rhythmic gymnastics at the Paris Olympics.

With a score of 14.166, Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade had sealed the deal for the gold medal. If not for a penalty in the execution, Simone Biles might have won her fourth consecutive gold medal for the USA at the Paris Olympics. Yet, her score of 14.133 was enough to secure a respectable silver medal.

However, it was the bronze medal that became a matter of controversy. Based on the performances and the total score, the jury decided to award the bronze medal initially to Ana Barbosu of Romania, even though both Sabrina Voinea and Barbosu had scored 13.700 each. It was the penalty that cost Voinea a bronze medal.

All of a sudden, American coach Cecile Landi registered an inquiry for Jordan Chiles, who was initially ranked fifth. According to the American coach, Chiles' execution wasn't properly judged. After the appeal, the jury decided to upgrade the score from 13.666 to 13.766, pushing her to the bronze medal position, and Ana Barbosu to the fourth position.

The Romanian authorities were aghast with this sudden change and appealed against the decision. From Olympic champion Nadia Comaneci to even the Romanian PM, everyone was against Barbosu being stripped of her bronze medal. Finally, the CAS relented and decided in favor of Romania.