Gymnast in Jordan Chiles' Olympic medal drama joins rival college team amid ongoing legal dispute over rightful winner.

NCAA gymnastics is getting a dose of international drama next year.

Romanian Olympic medalist Ana Barbosu announced her commitment to Stanford on Wednesday.

"I am thrilled to share that I have been accepted to Stanford University! I can't wait to become a part of this incredible community. Let's go Cardinal!"

Barbosu will now compete against American gymnast Jordan Chiles, who attends UCLA, in a historic rivalry between Stanford and UCLA in college sports.

Despite UCLA's first season in the Big Ten and Stanford's entry into the ACC, the two gymnastics programs will still compete against each other, with a scheduled meeting in March and future competitions likely to occur.

In 2026, Chiles and Stanford will face off in a UCLA gymnastics competition, where they will be pitted against each other after their controversial bronze medal win at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Chiles is currently involved in a court battle over the medal.

Barbosu secured third place and a podium spot at the end of the summer games' floor exercise final in August. She was ecstatic upon seeing the final scores.

A U.S. coach appealed the scoring on one of Chiles' moves, resulting in a change in the score that put the American in third place and left Barbosu off the podium. When Barbosu saw the scoring change on the board, she dropped the Romanian flag she was holding, covered her face with her hands, and walked away in tears.

Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade were joined on the podium by Chiles, who received the bronze medal.

On Aug. 10, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the judging panel had made an error in granting an inquiry that increased Chiles' score. The court found that the appeal had been submitted past the one-minute deadline and should not have been granted.

The International Olympic Committee decided that Chile had to forfeit the bronze medal she earned in the Paris Games.

Despite being instructed to return the medal, there are no reports that Chiles has done so. In a statement issued later that week, she described the ruling as "unjust."

The decision feels unjust and is a significant blow to me and everyone who has supported my journey. The unprompted racially driven attacks on social media are wrong and extremely hurtful. I have poured my heart and soul into this sport and am proud to represent my culture and country.

Barbosu received her bronze medal after the Olympics, and expressed sympathy for her American opponent and Romanian teammate, whose finishes were affected by the back-and-forth scoring change.

Bărbosu stated, "I can't help but think about Sabrina and Jordan right now. This situation is challenging for us, with so many uncertainties and intense emotions. I hope everyone comprehends that we have not done anything wrong at the Olympics. The Olympic spirit is more crucial than any misconception between the authorities."

"I hope that one day we will all receive a bronze medal."

During a panel at the Forbes Power Women's Summit 2024 in September, Chiles revealed that the emotional devastation of losing the medal was related to her "skin color" when she gave her first sit-down interview about the incident this week.

"For me, the events that have transpired are not just about the medal, but rather my skin color," Chiles said, tearfully.

Chiles previously stated that she was subjected to "racially motivated attacks" on social media on Aug. 15. The bronze medal win by Chiles marked the first time in Olympic history that a gymnastics podium featured three black competitors.

Currently, Team USA and Chiles are appealing a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) decision.

Chiles' lawyers have contended that her coach did indeed make the request beforehand and that there is video evidence to support it, as well as suggesting that the official who made the decision to remove Chiles' medal had connections to Romania.

According to Olympics.com, Chiles' lawyers stated that the Supreme Court should rule that the CAS decision was procedurally flawed for two reasons.

CAS violated Chiles' fundamental "right to be heard" by refusing to consider the video evidence that showed her inquiry was submitted on time, which contradicted the findings in CAS' decision.

"The CAS proceeding was unfair because Chiles was not informed that the president of the panel, Hamid G. Gharavi, had a conflict of interest. Gharavi had been representing Romania for almost a decade and was actively involved in the arbitration at the time."

The Swiss Federal Supreme Court has received an appeal from Chiles to reverse the CAS decision. She contends that she was not given a fair chance to defend herself and that the CAS did not adequately consider video evidence.

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