A’ja Wilson reveals she was ‘p****d’ over friend Jordan Chiles Olympic medal controversy

WNBAĀ star A’ja Wilson was like many Americans last August when they heard the news of Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles being stripped of her individual bronze medal – ‘p****d’.

Chiles won her first gold medal as part ofĀ Team USAĀ at the ParisĀ OlympicsĀ and temporarily took home an individual bronze in the floor exercise.

She lost her individual medal after an appeal from Romania days after the event took place. Chiles has filed a counter-appeal to overturn theĀ Court of Arbitration for Sport’s decision to strip her of the medal.

Meanwhile, Wilson was in France competing for Team USA in women’s basketball, winning a gold medal.

The two friends were namedĀ TIME’s ‘Women of the Year’Ā on Thursday, with Wilson torching the decision to deprive Chiles of her medal. Wilson was asked the lay-up question of whether the initial decision was the correct one.

‘Stop playing me. What kind of question is that? Yes. It’s a no-brainer. And I was p****d. Honestly, I prayed for you,’ Wilson said.

A'ja Wilson spoke out about Jordan Chiles' being stripped of her Olympic bronze medal
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A’ja Wilson spoke out about Jordan Chiles’ being stripped of her Olympic bronze medal

Chiles and Wilson were named TIME's 'Women of the Year' early Thursday in a joint honor
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Chiles and Wilson were named TIME’s ‘Women of the Year’ early Thursday in a joint honor

Thank you,’ Chiles responded.

‘I know those moments are hard – and here I go, about to cry – you worked your ass off to get to that,’ Wilson added. ‘I really prayed, not only because you’re my friend, but because I see you, I understand you, and it may look different because we’re in different sports, but you’re fully equipped, and God’s gonna always have you no matter what. And that’s gonna be my clean version, because the other version…’

‘I already got the other version,’ Chiles concluded.

The UCLA gymnast may be referring to a more explicit response about her ordeal from her friend, stating how unfair her being stripped of a bronze medal.

In December, fellow basketball star Caitlin Clark, who was the first overall pick in last year’s WNBA Draft, wasĀ named ‘Athlete of the Year’ by TIMEĀ Magazine after her debut season with theĀ IndianaĀ fever saw her smash records and bring unprecedented attention to the women’s league.

Clark was not chosen to play for Team USA, in what some called a surprising snub. However, the Fever star was part of the WNBA All-Star team that took down Team USA before its Olympic journey in the only defeat Wilson’s squad took all summer.

Wilson and Clark figure to be locks for the 2028 Summer Olympics’ team when the games come to Los Angeles.