Former Arkansas gymnast Joscelyn Roberson announced her transfer to Georgia on Thursday, ending a weeks-long saga that saw her announce her surprise departure from the Razorbacks before visiting Florida, UCLA, and Georgia.

In this exclusive Q&A with Gymnastics Now, Roberson discusses her decision to transfer, what she liked about each school, her plans for the coming months, and why Georgia was ultimately the right fit.

READ MORE: Joscelyn Roberson announces transfer to Georgia: ‘This is where I’m meant to be’

Why Joscelyn Roberson decided to transfer

Gymnastics Now: When did you decide to transfer?

Joscelyn Roberson: That’s a great question, because I originally decided to transfer at the beginning of this last season, so I knew early, early on that I was going to be leaving, but then I changed my mind. [I decided] I’m not going to leave because I love [Arkansas] so much. And then, right after nationals, that’s when I decided – I was like, ‘Okay, I’m gonna leave.’

It wasn’t a done deal that I was going to go to Georgia. The reason I left was not because of the coaches, so I know a lot of people think that, but that was not the reason at all.

Why Joscelyn Roberson narrowed it down to Georgia, Florida, and UCLA

GN: Once you decided for sure you were transferring and entered the portal, what made you narrow it down to Florida, UCLA, and Georgia?

Roberson: My biggest requirements were I didn’t want to get to know a completely new staff, so I went to schools that I had already built that relationship – from either recruiting the first time or going to camps and just being around them or, obviously, Cecile and Laurent [Landi], they’re my old club coaches.

I was in talks with LSU a little bit, but it just kind of fizzled out and I just decided not to go there.

Another big requirement was good academics. I want to go to med school, so having that med school close or on the campus, which Florida [and] UCLA have. Then Georgia is opening up theirs this year, so that was a big requirement for me.

And then the third, and probably the most important, was I wanted to go to a school where I already had stable, good relationships with girls on the team. That was really, really important for me. Obviously, there’s so many girls I know on UCLA and Florida’s teams that are also doing elite, and then on Georgia’s team there’s a bunch of girls from my old club and from development camp that I know really well.

Obviously, I wanted to go to a school that could get me back to the Olympics, and I felt like those three schools could.

GN: That’s, I feel like, an obvious one. From the outside, the assumption was like, ‘She’s got to go somewhere where elite can be a priority as well.’

Roberson: It’s not just like where elite can be done. I wanted it to be celebrated… encouraged. And I felt like the school that I [previously] mentioned that I didn’t visit didn’t really encourage it.

I get it. I mean, obviously, [it’s] the NCAA – their main goal is to get a national championship. But my main goal is to get a national championship and then go to the Olympics.

Debriefing Joscelyn Roberson’s official visits

GN: Take us through the visit process. How did that go? What did you like about each school, and then what made you choose Georgia?

Roberson: I started out at Florida. I loved getting to know the girls, and their facilities were absolutely amazing, like their athletic dining hall was so insane – they had a game room and everything. It was so cool, and their resources – their academic resources – are to die for. Their resources for career development were definitely the best out of the three.

NIL is going to be basically the same wherever you go, I feel like, especially the schools I was looking at, so NIL wasn’t really a big issue for any school.

Then UCLA, I loved how close it was to everything. It was like you could go to Santa Monica, you could go to Beverly Hills, and the Olympics being there in two years – I feel like the deals would have been really nice there.

The girls for both of those – I’m super, super close with all of them. [UCLA’s] Nola [Matthews] is like my best, best friend.

The reason I chose Georgia is because I felt like it was a good mix of all of the schools. I had the relationships I wanted. I had the coaching I wanted. I had the academics. I just loved it. And then it just felt like more comfortable to me.

When I was in [Athens], I couldn’t really explain it, but I felt relaxed. I felt like, ‘Okay, this is where I’m meant to be.’

When I was at Florida and UCLA, it kind of felt like… just not like home. They were both really, really cool spots to be, and I would be so, so happy to be at either of those schools, but it just didn’t feel like that’s where I could see myself going to school and to gym every single day.

GN: That’s important, especially if you are taking on the challenge of school and NCAA and elite. You need to feel at home.

Roberson: Yeah, but I will say, Florida is a great school, and UCLA is too. I want them to know that they did a great job, and if it weren’t for everything that I was looking for – like if there were different circumstances, those schools would be perfect.

Joscelyn Roberson’s elite plans for 2026

GN: Switching gears: I know you were at national team camp over the weekend. Did you go by yourself? What was that like?

Roberson: I did go by myself, and I was only there for two out of the four days.

The reason I went was because they asked me to still go. I talked to the staff, and I said, ‘Hey, this is where I’m at. This is kind of what’s happening. Do you guys still want me to be there?’ And they were like, ‘Yeah, we’d love for you to come and just be a cheerleader for the girls.’

Because I didn’t have a coach, I couldn’t train, so that’s why. So I was literally just there to cheer on the girls and be there and then check in with medical, because I kind of injured my foot at [NCAA] nationals.

GN: Okay, so now that you’ve made this decision – I know you mentioned the foot – what do the next few months look like for you between moving, training elite, etc.?

Roberson: I think the next few months look like me just getting to Georgia, settling in, kind of getting back on Cecile’s training program, and figuring out how they work at Georgia.

The goal is to train elite this year but not to compete because I really want to get healthy. One, because my ankles were an issue last year, and then my ankles are still an issue. Plus my foot now. So I want to take a small break, and I decided that if there was a year to take a break, it would be this one.

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.

Joscelyn Roberson looks ahead to the 2027 NCAA season

GN: Are you hoping to do all-around at Georgia? And what do you think of the team so far?

Roberson: My goal is to always do all-around, but I understand the caliber of Georgia gymnastics. And it’s only going to get better. I feel like we have really, really good incoming freshmen, and not that many girls left, especially because last year – their team was so, so young.

CaMarah [Williams]… Nyla [Aquino]… Kelise [Woolford]… all of them… I feel like we’re going to be really, really good. So I understand if I don’t compete all-around.

PSA: Let Joscelyn Roberson have her moment

GN: Is there anything else that you want to touch on?

Roberson: Actually I do – about the live stream [announcement], because I’ve been seeing a lot of people that don’t like it.

I decided to do that because I feel like commitment posts and announcement posts – they always look the same.

I’ve been getting way more attention on this than I thought. I didn’t think it was going to be as big of a deal as it was, so I thought it would be fun to kind of interact with the fans.

I thought after announcing I would stay on and answer questions. But yeah, that’s why I decided to do a live, and I thought it’d be cool.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.