Shawn Johnson wanted to take home the gold in the gymnastics all-around competition heading into the 2008 Beijing Olympics. “It’s a pinch-me moment because I can’t believe I was at the Olympics”, the 31-year-old former gymnast told Olympics.com just a year ago, looking back on her career-defining victory. “It feels like a lifetime ago. We’ve now worked so long within this world of social media that I catch myself being like, ‘I’m a YouTuber,’ she added.
The Olympic gymnast is now a mother of three and has adapted to the world of social media with ease, teaming with her husband to produce entertaining content. Recently, a video from one of her incredible global moments went viral, gaining a lot of attention and bringing back fond memories for gymnastics fans.
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Shawn Johnson East’ performance relived by fans
“What’s the gym routine that lives rent-free in your brain?” is a thought-provoking question that the @planetofgymnastics Instagram account got asked by one of its fans. The account responded by posting a video of Shawn Johnson’s mesmerizing display on the balancing beam at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games gymnastics apparatus finals, held at the National Indoor Stadium. The post was captioned, “Olympic Beam Gold Medalist at 16 YEARS OLD. 👑”
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Credits: Imago
Then 16 years old, Shawn Johnson confidently waved to the fans on August 19, 2008, before displaying the ideal balance of strength, grace, and technique. Shawn Johnson not only won gold in the Olympic balance beam competition, but she also continued to excel, winning silver medals in the floor exercise, all-around and team competitions.
In the individual all-around competition, the United States Women’s Gymnastics team’s victory was the fourth time that a nation has taken home gold and silver. Johnson announced her decision to retire on June 3, 2012, after her bid to rejoin the 2012 Olympic team was unsuccessful. Years after her retirement, Johnson is still a prominent personality, using social media to share highlights of her life engaging with fans who never fail to appreciate the legend.
Gymnastics icon prowess shines on social media
From a motivated teen Olympian, Shawn Johnson’s story has been really remarkable and goes beyond the medals count. Looking back at her performance, a fan clamoured and wrote, “WE WANT TO WATCH THIS LEVEL OF GYMNASTICS AGAIN.”
Another one noted when she first felt star-struck recalling, “First time I saw her: Panamerican games in Rio 2007. A living legend! Her beam is phenomenal!” Someone said, “Only Shawn Johnson can do this. I love her”
There was a rather sincere comment that read, “I thought about this routine (and nastia’s!) when I was in labor almost 15 years ago. I concentrated on it so much until the contractions lessened. Good times.”
Some of the best ones were, “Forever rent free. I have it memorized,” and “What’s crazy is that this isn’t even her best!”
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Written by
Edited by
Himanshu Sridhar