“I knew I didn’t have the greatest shot anymore.” Just a year ago, this gymnastics star from Penn State University was on the sidelines. His Olympic dreams were cut short by a concussion that ruled him out of the trials. Quite expectedly, suffering a catastrophic situation, Joshua Karnes was devastated. And with all the confusion surrounding his career, one question lingered constantly. How will he bounce back? Well, on Thursday night, he delivered his answer, and how!

On June 12, the 2025 Senior Pan American Championships held in Panama City, Panama, Joshua Karnes seized the all-around silver medal in men’s artistic gymnastics with a score of 79.900. He held his own against a stacked field that included Canada’s Felix Dolce and Brazil’s Diogo Soares, both Olympic veterans from Paris 2024. For Karnes, though, this wasn’t just about medals. It was about reclaiming what had been taken from him.

This time, Karnes didn’t just perform well—he stood out. He made it to three apparatus finals, placing top three on pommel horse and horizontal bar, and fourth on parallel bars. After missing the Olympics last year, this was a strong and steady comeback.

Thankfully, Karnes wasn’t alone. The U.S. men’s team came into Panama with something to prove and delivered. Behind Karnes, Taylor Christopulos landed fifth in the all-around and advanced to two finals, while Taylor Burkhart qualified in three events and Brandon Dang led the field on pommel horse. Even Junnosuke Iwai, a last-minute replacement for the ill Asher Hong, came through. Qualifying on floor with a strong 13.600.

Together, they pushed Team USA to the top of the qualifying leaderboard with a dominant score of 241.950. And this score was well ahead of Canada and Brazil. With the team final looming, the writing on the wall is clear. The U.S. men are peaking at the right time, and Karnes is right in the center of it all. Surely, his silver may not erase the disappointment of 2024. But it marks something just as valuable. A comeback earned the hard way. Unfortunately, just a year back, things were not at all rosy for Joshua Karnes.

Concussion crash almost ended it for Josh Karnes

Josh Karnes’ Olympic dream didn’t unravel on the competition floor. It slipped away on a mat in Fort Worth, Texas. A fall from the high bar at the 2024 US Gymnastics Championships on May 30 left the Erie native concussed and sidelined for weeks. With just days to go before the Olympic Trials, Karnes wasn’t cleared to train, drive, or even stay awake for more than a few hours. “I’d sleep for 15 hours each day,” he recalled. Karnes added,“Wake up to eat and then treatment.” For nearly two weeks, recovery, not routines, defined his every move.

It wasn’t until six days before the Trials that Karnes finally passed the concussion protocol. By then, his Olympic hopes had dimmed. “I only had one real day of routines before,” he admitted. Still, he boarded the flight to Minneapolis on Monday, stepped onto the podium by Thursday, and competed across all six events. Karnes finished 17th in the all-around with a 40.65—far from Olympic contention, but a personal triumph. “I knew I didn’t have the greatest shot anymore because of (the concussion). I’m just going to have a good time, have fun with it, and really soak it all in,” he said. 

The sting lingered. “It was a little sad for me that I wasn’t fighting for a spot,” Josh Karnes confessed. A rising senior at Penn State and a 2024 NCAA All-American, Karnes now sets his eyes on Los Angeles. The gymnast further added, “In four years, I feel like my body will be fully matured, and that will be perfect timing.” But now, with the setback behind him, Karnes now turns the page, eyeing redemption and a full-circle moment at the 2028 Olympics.