Olympian Jordan Chiles started bawling the first time she set foot in a gymnastics center.
When she was 6 years old, her parents signed her up for gymnastics so she could release her boundless energy. Chiles said she used to turn the family's furniture into a jungle gym. So, one day, her parents blindfolded her on their way to see her "surprise" — gymnastics lessons. And when they arrived and removed the blindfold, her eyes filled with tears. "I thought you bought me a puppy!" she cried.
That is one of the opening stories in Chiles' new memoir, I'm That Girl: Living the Power of My Dreams. The book traces her transformation from that bouncy 6-year-old to a two-time Olympian decorated with gold and silver medals.
But reaching such heights in gymnastics was never a sure thing. Chiles writes that she thought seriously about quitting in her mid-teens until she had a pivotal conversation with her friend and fellow gymnast, Simone Biles, at a training camp in Florida.
"[Biles] came to me … she said you have the talent, you have the gift. If you want to do it, go do it. If not, continue on with your life," Chiles told NPR. "I wasn't seeing the full potential of who Jordan Chiles could be. I wasn't seeing the full potential of what my gymnastics talent could be. And that was an eye-opener for me. "
Chiles continued with gymnastics and won medals in the 2020 Tokyo Games and the 2024 Paris Games. But last year's Olympics were also a major source of anguish.
Chiles had won her first individual Olympic medal, a bronze in the women's floor exercise. That win led to Chiles standing beside Biles, who had won silver, and Rebeca Andrade of Brazil, who had won gold. It was the first time three Black women had shared an Olympic gymnastics podium. The moment went viral.
But days later, Chiles' medal was stripped away. An arbitration court determined that a last-minute inquiry by her coach, which boosted Chiles' score into third place, had been filed a few seconds too late.
"I was devastated," Chiles told NPR. "It was all over the news. I had nowhere to look without somebody asking me the question or asking me, are you OK?"
In a recent interview, All Things Considered host Juana Summers spoke to Chiles about all those ups and downs.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Interview highlights
Juana Summers: There's this story you share about your hair in this book that I have to be honest, it made me incredibly upset when I read it. You were 12. You went to this training camp in Texas and you were there with your former coach. Your hair had been freshly braided and your coach, she said it wasn't the "elite international look." So she takes you into the bathroom, as you write, and cuts your hair — not just the extensions that were part of your braids, but your actual hair. And it just sounded so painful the way you described it. Can you take us back to that moment and tell us what you were feeling?
Jordan Chiles: I was young. I was 12 years old. So, at that time, I just kept my composure. I couldn't really do anything. But now, when I think about it, I wish I used my voice. I wish I told people, especially my coach, that that's not right. This is my hair. This is something that I embrace. And this is something that you just took away from me. I'm not always going to look the same as every typical gymnast that people see.
Summers: You were so young when this happened. This was one awful moment, one insult, but it feels like it came at the top of this mountain of overt insults and micro-aggressions directed at you. You were just a kid who was trying to do your best and be your best. How did you stay so clear-eyed, and find your way out of that and keep going?
Chiles: I could tell you from the age of 12 to 16, I wasn't clear-minded. I wasn't any of those things. I felt like I [was] in a box. And all you see are dark corners everywhere you turn. So the things that I would do is just lean on my support system, whether it's my family, whether it's my teachers in school, whether it was friends, whether it was God himself. Because at the end of the day, I just knew I had a talent and I had a gift — that it wasn't something I should shy away from and that I should embrace.
Summers: You've talked so much about the things and people that have sustained you and given you strength. I'd like to ask about another one of those — and that's your faith. I think a lot of people might not know that you grew up in the church. Your parents were both pastors. You've talked about praying before every competition, and you even have tattoos of meaningful verses of scripture like Philippians 4:13 — "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" — which I definitely remember from growing up in the church myself. I would just love to ask you, given everything that we've talked about and everything that you have experienced, how have your feelings about God and your faith changed over time?
Chiles: I honestly would not be standing here if it wasn't for God. I was already a miracle when I was born. I wasn't supposed to be born. There [were] a lot of things that were happening with my mom during the timeframe. So, I can say that God has been with me. He's shown me miracles. He's shown me downfalls, but he showed me that I could get up from it. I'm always going to be faithful in who I believe in, and that is God himself. And so I thank him every day.
Summers: I want to turn now to the Paris Olympics and this moment that we all saw when you, your teammate and friend Simone Biles and Brazil's Rebeca Andrade were on that podium together. It was incredibly significant, no matter what came later with regard to the controversy over the medal. I just want to ask you to take us through what that moment felt like for you.
Chiles: So I'm jumping for joy, I'm in awe. It's time to put on our medal ceremony outfits and everything. And a lot of people have told me that I'm known to make history moments throughout my career. So I was just like, "Wow, this is another history moment that I get to add to my book." So that day was amazing. I got to go celebrate with my family after and I even got to go to Disney Paris the next day. I was enjoying life, embracing the moment.
Summers: You've talked about this incredible highlight, and yet you also write about coming from this huge celebratory point in your life to feeling this complete desolation as you were learning that your bronze medal had been revoked. I'm hoping you can tell us what happened next.
Chiles: I was devastated. I was crying. I felt like every single time I would accomplish something, something would be stripped away from me. And I had a part in my book, I explain that the same thing happened to me at a younger age when I got an award and it got stripped away from me. So to me, it was like a full circle moment. My life had kind of spiraled. It was just a very hard moment. And I never knew that I was going to have to go through that.
Summers: Some time has passed since all of this has been unfolding, but how are you taking care of yourself now as you allow your team, your lawyers, and others in your corner to continue to push for that bronze medal?
Chiles: I have been doing the best that I can on my end. I really dove deep into my mental health. So now I get to focus on being a UCLA student-athlete, competing with my team, having a lot of fun in California, going to the beach, going shopping, doing all those things as a typical 23-year-old would do, and just enjoy being a dog mom and a best friend.
Summers: I have to ask Jordan, what's next for you? It feels like the 2028 Summer Olympics in L.A. are just around the corner. How large are the 2028 games looming in your thinking?
Chiles: They're up there. I'm not going to say they're really, really big. I think right now my biggest thing is just finishing these next few years of college and we'll see from there. It's not a yes, but it's not a no.
Summers: I do want to ask you, though, you've done so much. You have created this incredible legacy. You've had this incredible history. You've done so much as a part of Team USA. How do you feel about the mark that you, yourself have made on the sport?
Chiles: I feel like I've made a huge mark. You know, people always say Simone [Biles] changed the game of gymnastics, and I feel like I've changed the culture of gymnastics. Who would have thought a girl would have this many tattoos? Would have lashes? Would have long nails? Would do crazy things or even dance on the side or get interaction with the crowd? I think it's really cool that I've been able to change that perspective of what gymnastics is supposed to be like.
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