Jade Carey, the Olympic gold gymnast who bleeds Orange and Black

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- At 21 years old, Jade Carey won a gold medal in floor at the Tokyo Olympics. In 2024, she is trying to repeat the feat while also competing for Oregon State.

"That is definitely one of the best days of my life," she told me Tuesday. "I feel like ever since being a little kid, that's always something that you dream of. And not only to win, but just to even get there. "

If Carey makes the USA Gymnastics team, she'll become the first ever female active NCAA gymnast to do so. Balancing college athletics and a professional career is no easy task. But when Carey visited Oregon State for the first time in 2014, she knew she wanted to be part of beaver nation.

"The season comes up so quick after the NCAA season, it's just I have to be ready to go. I don't have a whole lot of time to prepare after, so just trying to prepare now at the same time," Carey said.

Carey is taking classes online allowing her time to train, and has devoted more time during her college season to prepare for the Olympic Trials.

If there's one thing for sure, Carey is and will always be a Beaver.

"This place is really special to me. Every girl on this team is like my sister, so it's just something that I wasn't quite ready to leave behind yet. And I knew that this environment was something that was really good for me," expressed Carey.

Oregon State is ranked 16th and recently lost to second-ranked Cal, but with most of the season still ahead, Carey and the Beavers have high hopes.

"I know we want to get to nationals as a team, and I think that this year, in this team that we have, is really capable of that. Everybody comes in every day, and that's what's on the back of everybody's mind."