Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has revealed that he will boycott the Paris Olympics’ closing ceremony.
Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu thought that she had secured a bronze medal in France, only to see her third-place finish taken away from her. Barbosu had already started celebrating her success in the floor event before the coaches of Jordan Chiles appealed to the judges over the American’s score.
An inquiry was quickly then held into Chiles’ scoring and a decision was made for her mark to be improved by a further 0.1, which saw her clinch bronze and Barbosu slip off of the podium.
The outcome left those in Romania infuriated, especially Prime Minister Ciolacu. The 56-year-old revealed on Facebook that he is set to boycott the Olympics’ closing ceremony as he is still unhappy with how Barbosu was pushed off of the podium.
He said: “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.
“To withdraw a medal earned by honest work on the basis of an appeal, which neither the coaches nor the top technicians understand, is totally unacceptable.
“It is unacceptable that, in a competition of this magnitude, which promotes values such as respect, understanding and excellence, a child who had honestly earned her medal should be brutally deprived of the result of her work of four years!
“I couldn’t look at her tears and accept with serenity that such a thing is perfectly normal! And the fact that hundreds of millions of viewers from all over the world were, like us Romanians, effectively shocked by this terrible scene, shows that somewhere, in the system of organizing this competition, something is wrong.”
Ciolacu then went on to praise Barbosu as well as fellow Romanian Sabrina Maneca-Voinea and explain that they would both be treated as medallists. He concluded: “Sabrina and Ana Maria, you have a whole nation by your side for whom your work and tears are more precious than any medal, no matter what precious metal it is!
“And I assure you that the Romanian state will treat you, including in terms of prizes, like Olympic medallists. Because that’s what you are to all of us!”