San Jose, Calif. – Shawn Johnson made her first big impression on the gymnastics scene a year ago when she went to the U.S. championships and won the junior all-around title with a score that was better than the senior champion, two-time world champion Nastia Liukin.
Now in her first year of senior competition, Johnson has dethroned Liukin as the darling of American gymnastics and set herself up for 12 months of hype and hope in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.
The 15-year-old from West Des Moines, Iowa, won the senior all-around title Saturday night with four rock-solid routines that set her apart from the field and marked her as a gold-medal contender at the world championships Sept. 2-9 in Stuttgart, Germany. Despite risky routines and degree of difficulty figures that already rank her among the best in the world, the 4-foot-8 Johnson made her routines look almost effortless.
“I just kept my mind set on worlds,” Johnson said. “It’s a dream for any athlete. I couldn’t have been any happier.”
Shayla Worley of Orlando, Fla., was second and Liukin was third. They were named to the world championship team along with Johnson, Alicia Sacramone, Ivana Hong, Bridget Sloan and Samantha Peszek.
Johnson placed first in balance beam and floor exercises, second in vault and third on the uneven bars. She won the all-around, balance beam and uneven bars last month at the Pan American Games.
“I feel like I’m in a dream,” Johnson said. “I’m always asking people to pinch me because I don’t know if it’s real.”
Liukin, who had ankle surgery last fall, had a tough championships. The two-time defending U.S. all-around champion, who won a silver medal in the all-around at the 2005 world championships, struggled on floor exercises and vault – her training in those disciplines has been hampered by a flare-up of her ankle injury – but she was strong on uneven bars and balance beam.
Liukin, 17, competed only on bars and beam at the Pan Am Games and hasn’t done all four events in a meet since last year’s U.S. championships. She injured her ankle at world championships.
“Even though it was not the best meet I’ve ever had – possibly one of the worst – it’s OK,” Liukin said. “Things like that happen. The low points do make you stronger.”
Liukin is in the unfamiliar position of being usurped by someone two years younger than her.
“There definitely is a lot of attention on Shawn,” Liukin said. “I know where she’s at because I was there two years ago.”
Men’s team named
Denver native Guillermo Alvarez, Alexander Artemev of Morrison and David Durante of the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs were named to the world championships team. Also selected were Sean Golden, Jonathan Horton and Kevin Tan. Sho Nakamori will be the alternate.
