Romania’s prime minister, Marcel Ciolacu, said he will boycott the Olympic closing ceremony after his country were denied a medal in the women’s gymnastics.
Ana Barbosu had already begun celebrating her bronze for the floor event on Monday when coaches for Jordan Chiles, of the United States, entered an appeal to judges over Chiles’s score. The inquiry resulted in a 0.1 boost for Chiles, enough to overtake Barbosu for the last spot on the podium.
“I decided not to attend the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics, following the scandalous situation in the gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in an absolutely dishonourable manner,” Ciolacu said on Facebook. “To withdraw a medal earned for honest work on the basis of an appeal … is totally unacceptable!”
Ciolacu promised Romania would honour Barbosu and her teammate Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, who finished fifth, as Olympic medallists. “You have with you an entire nation for which your work and tears are more precious than any medal, no matter what precious metal they are from,” he said.
Barbosu was holding a Romanian flag when she looked up and saw the scoring change on the board. She dropped the flag, brought her hands to her face and walked off in tears.
Inquiries are a standard part of gymnastics competitions, with athletes or coaches asking judges to review a routine to ensure elements are rated properly. Scores can be adjusted up or down.
Romania was a longtime superpower in gymnastics, but this was their return to the Olympics after a 12-year break. The Romanian great Nadia Comaneci made her feelings clear, writing on X: “I can’t believe we play with athletes mental health and emotions like this.”
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Ciolacu said viewers worldwide were “shocked by this terrible scene” and said it highlights “somewhere in the system of organising this competition, something is wrong”.