Romanian Prime Minister Boycotts 2024 Olympics Closing Ceremony After Athletes 'Lose' Medals

Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu initially won bronze in the floor exercise on August 5 and began celebrating on the mat. But then the U.S. coaches unexpectedly complained to the judges about the score of their team's Jordan Chiles. The judges' subsequent review resulted in a 0.1-point increase, allowing Chiles to edge out Barbosu for bronze.

Barbosu held a Romanian flag in celebration as she looked up at the scoreboard. But when she saw the score change and dropped her bronze medal position, the 18-year-old broke down, dropped the flag, covered her face and walked away in tears.

"I have decided not to attend the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics (August 11), following the scandalous situation in gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in a completely unfair way. Revocation of medals won based on an appeal... is completely unacceptable!", the Romanian Prime Minister posted a strong message on his personal Facebook account.

Mr Ciolacu added that Romania would still honour Barbosu and teammate Sabrina Maneca-Voinea (who also complained of unfair punishment) as Olympic medalists. Both would be awarded medal bonuses. “You carry with you an entire nation whose work and tears are more precious than any medal, no matter what precious metal they are made of,” Mr Ciolacu wrote.

Prime Minister Ciolacu later stressed that viewers around the world were shocked by the scene and that "something was wrong in the system that organised this competition".

Romanian Gymnastics Federation President Carmencita Constantin said she would file a complaint with the International Court of Arbitration for Sport after saying both athletes had been unfairly treated. Meanwhile, Romanian gymnastics legend Nadia Comaneci (who has won five Olympic gold medals) also condemned the score-changing in a social media post.

This year's Olympics marks Romania's return to gymnastics since the 2012 Games. The country has a proud history in gymnastics with 12 medals, including gold at the 1984, 2000 and 2004 Olympics. Romania has yet to win a gymnastics medal in Paris.