After two-time Olympian Jordan Chiles earned her first individual medal in the floor final, the International Olympic Committee demanded she return her bronze medal so it could be reallocated to Romania’s Ana Barbosu.
Public Enemy founding member Flavor Flav, who floated all around the Paris Olympics — most notably to support the USA women’s water polo team — and is known for donning supersized clock necklaces, wanted to show his support for the American gymnast by rewarding her with a piece of hardware exclusive to her.
Last month, the rapper revealed the bronze clock for Chiles, saying “USA gonna Fight the Powers that be,” in reference to Public Enemy’s hit song “Fight the Power.”
USA gonna Fight the Powers that be,,, in the meantime between time,,,
Imma always a man of my word @ChilesJordan https://t.co/evxFPV0YEd pic.twitter.com/rz72uZeWEz— FLAVOR FLAV (@FlavorFlav) August 13, 2024
On Wednesday at the MTV Video Music Awards, Flavor Flav officially gifted the clock to Chiles, placing it around her neck while on stage.
“I know they tried to take your medal away from you, you know what I’m saying, but you know what? I got you something that they can’t take away from you,” he said.
The rapper put the clock around Chiles then put his water polo cap on before giving a shoutout to the USA women’s water polo team. He also revealed that he would provide the prize money that Chiles originally earned from winning the bronze.
“I got that for you. I got your prize money for you,” Flavor Flav said. “I just wanted to surprise you with that. I didn’t want to say nothing to you backstage. But, Jordan you did your thing. Congratulations. You deserve everything.”
Jordan Chiles’ mother, Gina, showed her appreciation for Flavor Flav on social media when the rapper originally announced his intentions in August.
Thank you. Means the world. She’s not on socials right now as you can imagine. I’ll share it with her. 🫶🏽 https://t.co/HzavHHYxhp
— Gina Chiles (@gina_chiles) August 13, 2024
Chiles earned a 13.666 in the floor final, initially placing her at fifth, while Barbosu earned a 13.7, putting her in the bronze medal position. Team USA coach Cecile Landi inquired into Chiles’ difficulty score, which resulted in her score increasing to 13.766 and placing Chiles on the podium in third.
After Chiles was awarded her bronze medal, the Romanian Gymnastics Federation filed a complaint to the Court of Arbitration of Sport about the inquiry. The court ruled that the inquiry on Chiles’ behalf shouldn’t have been accepted because it was submitted after the one-minute deadline.
Heartbroken, Chiles posted on her Instagram story that she’d be taking a break from social media to prioritize her mental health.
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee submitted a letter and video evidence on Sunday to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to show the appeal was made within the one-minute deadline. But on Monday, USA Gymnastics released a statement that read: “USA Gymnastics was notified by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Monday that their rules do not allow for an arbitral award to be reconsidered even when conclusive new evidence is presented.”
