Joscelyn Roberson Delays Elite Return After Painful Injury as 2028 Olympic Plans Take Shape
August 27, 2023; San Jose, California, USA; Joscelyn Roberson during the 2023 U.S. Gymnastics Championships at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY
August 27, 2023; San Jose, California, USA; Joscelyn Roberson during the 2023 U.S. Gymnastics Championships at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY
Eyeing the 2028 LA Olympics, gymnast Joscelyn Roberson announced her latest move that will keep her sidelined from the elite competition in 2026.
Despite her 2025 Bronze medal run at the World Championships in Jakarta, the 20-year-old will not be competing at the elite level due to an apparent ankle injury. The revelation took place in a recent interview with Gymnastics Now.
“The goal is to train elite this year but not to compete… because my ankles were an issue last year… Plus my foot now,” she stated. “We’ll hit the ground heavy and running next year for Worlds and then the Olympics (in 2028). But I’ll train elite (this year), I just won’t compete it.”
Jun 30, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Joscelyn Roberson looks on prior to the U.S. Olympic Team Gymnastics Trials at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 30, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Joscelyn Roberson looks on prior to the U.S. Olympic Team Gymnastics Trials at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports
This will be a much-needed “small break” for the athlete, who was also an alternate for Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics. And while focusing on getting healthy, Roberson’s goal remains a return to the Olympics.
“Obviously, I wanted to go to a school that could get me back to the Olympics,” she added in the conversation further. “My main goal is to get a national championship and then go to the Olympics.”
And this precisely summed up her recent move to Georgia, where she’ll be spending her remaining two years of college eligibility.
Joscelyn Roberson Has Transferred to Georgia
Wrapping up her 2-year tenure with the Arkansas Razorbacks with 2 All-American honors under her belt, Roberson now will be calling Georgia home. And the Olympic dream wasn’t the only reason why she chose the GymDogs.
“The reason I chose Georgia is because I felt like it was a good mix of all of the schools,” she said. “I had the relationships, coaching, the academics (I wanted). I just loved it… I felt like, ‘Okay, this is where I’m meant to be.’”
Going forward, Roberson will train at the facility that feels like home and prepare herself for an NCAA title before leaping into the Olympics.
But do you think she’ll make it to the 2028 LA Olympics? Let us know in the comments.
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Written by
Deblina Roy