"Thank you to all of my athletes for your trust & commitment to our program" - Cecile Landi pens emotional note as she bids adieu to WCC after 7 years

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Aug 22, 2024 08:19 GMT

After a long and fruitful association with the World Champions Centre and a successful coaching stint at the 2024 Paris Olympics, gymnast-turned-coach Cecile Landi is set to move on. She was recently appointed co-head coach of the gymnastics team at the University of Georgia.

Landi took to Instagram to thank her trainee gymnasts and their parents for their trust in her as the coach of the World Champions Centre. She penned an emotional note as she bid goodbye to WCC and also shared a video of herself with budding gymnasts from WCC.

In the caption to the post, Landi wrote:

"Thank you to the entire WCC family for your endless support and love I've felt these past 7 years [emoji]. Thank you to all of my athletes and their parents for your trust and commitment to our program. I can't wait to see what the future holds for y'all [heart emoji]. Forever WCC PROUD."

Cecil Canqueteau-Landi is a French Olympian gymnast who represented France at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. After her gymnastics career came to an end, she coached at the French National Training Center from 2001 to 2004, following which she relocated to the United States in 2004 along with her husband, fellow former French gymnast Laurent Landi.

The two joined the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy in 2007. In 2017, the two moved to the World Champions Centre in Spring, Texas, which had been recently opened to the public. The WCC is owned by Ron & Nellie Biles, the adoptive parents of Olympic champion Simone Biles.

Among the famous students of Cecile Landi at WCC are Biles, Joscelyn Robertson [a reserve for the USA women's gymnastics team for the Paris Olympics], and Jordan Chiles, who was involved in a controversial decision over the bronze medal in the floor exercise event at the recently concluded Games.

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Cecile Landi on the recent bronze medal controversy at the Paris Olympics

Jordan Chiles (C) hugs Cecile Landi as Simone Biles celebrates after the Floor Exercise finals at the Paris Olympics 2024 [Image Source: Getty]

Jordan Chiles and Simone Biles were part of the USA's gold medal-winning team in the team all-around event and also performed superbly well in the individual floor exercise event. While Biles took home the silver medal, Chiles' bronze medal became a matter of controversy.

Following the result, Cecile Landi stood behind her student Jordan Chiles like a rock. Responding to a fan on Instagram that accused the American coaching staff of cheating, Landi replied,

"I shouldn't have to explain but I will ONCE.....

Jordan's highest possible SV on a possible 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 elements were completed. During the floor finals, we thought it was better, and being placed fifth with nothing to lose, I sent the inquiry so I wouldn't regret not asking. I didn't think that it would be accepted and at my surprise it was."

Landi had appealed against the judges' decision to award the bronze medal to Ana Barbosu of Romania, claiming that they ignored the difficulty level executed by Chiles. Following an inquiry, Chiles' score was raised to 13.766, giving her the bronze medal instead of Ana Barbosu of Romania. Sabrina Voinea, who had stood fourth, was pushed down to the fifth position.

However, after protests from the Romanian authorities, the matter reached the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the American gymnast was stripped of her bronze medal and Barbosu was awarded the bronze medal instead.