After years of believing her gymnastics career was over, former Georgia gymnast Ariel Posen is back on the competition floor. Posen, who medically retired in August 2023 because of chronic, severe knee issues caused by a valgus, recently committed to LSU after entering the NCAA transfer portal.

She is making her return almost three years after quitting gymnastics due to repeated surgeries and persistent problems caused by valgus knee condition.

The former elite gymnast said it was one of the hardest moments of her life to retire. Even before a preseason injury in her freshman year at Georgia, years of training and strain had already affected her.

“Even though I didn’t want to, it was never something I thought I was going to have to choose to do,” Posen said, according to redandblack.com. “But the most important thing was my physical health, my mental health, and protecting my education.”

Shortly after making the decision, Ariel Posen was on a plane back home, beginning to get accustomed to life without the sport she’d pursued for 14 consecutive years.

“I had to come to terms with that at the time, thinking my gymnastics career was completely over,” she said. “So it was an adjustment.”

Before college, Posen had a dazzling gymnastics résumé. She was a 10-time state champion, an 8-time regional champion, a national champion and a Junior Olympics Level 10 floor champion. Her elite career involved almost 40 hours of training a week.

But her knee condition kept making things complicated. The eight-degree tilt of her kneecap increased her risk of injury and eventually resulted in three surgeries. Her latest surgery, a femoral osteotomy, finally fixed the alignment issue and gave her the confidence to start training again safely.

“I miss the sport. That’s what’s missing,” Posen said. “I miss gymnastics; I miss having something to train for.”

LSU Move Opened New Chapter For Former Georgia Gymnast Ariel Posen

The new motivation for Posen began to form in late 2025 after conversations with gymnasts she used to train with. The talks made her realise how connected she still was to the sport.

She immediately began training with a coach in Watkinsville, Georgia, and soon regained her rhythm and confidence. Many were initially surprised at her decision to return, but her family and friends also supported her comeback greatly.

Now committed to LSU, Posen steps into a new environment with a second chance to end her collegiate gymnastics career on her own terms. Her story has also brought attention to a different side of college athletics — one where retirement doesn’t necessarily have to be forever.

What are your thoughts on Posen's comeback?

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Written by

Chitrak Mukherjee

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi