Panel member who ruled on Team USA’s Jordan Chiles’ bronze medal appeal has a history of representing Romania in legal cases

American gymnast Jordan Chiles and the US Olympic team may very well feel like protagonists in a Franz Kafka novel, as they find themselves trapped in an increasingly surreal scenario while attempting to reclaim her bronze medal.

American gymnast Jordan Chiles and the US Olympic team may very well feel like protagonists in a Franz Kafka novel, as they find themselves trapped in an increasingly surreal scenario while attempting to reclaim her bronze medal. Their efforts to reclaim the bronze medal that Chiles thought she had won during the floor exercise at the Paris Olympics are encountering some increasingly bizarre obstacles, and a new twist in the ongoing saga emerged Tuesday. The head of the three-person panel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which ruled that the USA’s initial inquiry over Chiles’ floor exercise score was filed after the one-minute deadline and awarded third place to Romanian Ana Bǎrbosu on Saturday, has been representing Romanian interests for years. Dr. Hamid G. Gharavi, Philippe Sands and Song Lu sat on the panel, of which Gharavi was the president, according to CAS. Gharavi’s resume, linked on CAS’ website, lists multiple legal cases in which he has represented Romania in arbitration cases. The International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution was the first to report on the legal ties Gharavi has with Romania. In response to an inquiry for comment, Gharavi referred CNN to CAS. CNN has reached out to CAS about a possible conflict of interest within the panel.