You may know Shawn Johnson East as the powerhouse gymnast who brought home four Olympic medals at just 16 years old. One gold and three silvers from the 2008 Beijing Olympics. But long before the world watched her shine on the balance beam, she was just a little girl trying to find her footing in a sport that demands perfection. And as it turns out, her journey wasn’t always golden. In a recent video on her YouTube channel, Shawn & Andrew, the Olympic gymnastics icon opened up about one of the most defining and humbling moments of her early career.
“I started gymnastics when I was three,” Shawn shared, encouraged by her parents, who noticed her natural climbing and jumping skills. They kept her training balanced, limiting it to about 25 hours a week so she could still enjoy a normal childhood. By 12, she’d made the USA national team, “which was in 2004, I think,” and competed in her first US National Championships around 2005 or 2006.
In 2005, she became the first gymnast from Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute to join the U.S. Junior National Team after impressing at the U.S. Classic and Nationals. But it wasn’t all smooth sailing, Shawn admits. “I was 13 years old and a disaster. I came in 10th, which isn’t bad, and I still made it onto the USA national team.” That same day, she won gold medals at the 2007 US National Championships and got her first international assignment.
“I was told I would be flying directly to Brussels, Belgium, to represent the United States,” she mentions. By then, she was competing at the senior level and had a breakout year, winning the all-around title at Nationals ahead of stars like Nastia Liukin and Shayla Worley, then snagging three gold medals at the World Championships in Stuttgart in the all-around, floor exercise, and team events. That early “disaster” moment was a major turning point.
Now, years after retiring from the sport, Shawn continues to open up about the emotional weight of being in the spotlight at such a young age. While she’s embraced motherhood and entrepreneurship, recently launching Beam Kids, a supplement line focused on children’s nutrition, she hasn’t left her past behind. Instead, she uses it to inspire.
Whether she’s co-hosting national events like the 2025 Pro Volleyball Federation All-Star Match or sharing candid moments on her YouTube channel, Shawn Johnson East proves that vulnerability, not just victory, is what makes a true champion. But her journey till this point wasn’t easy at all, especially in gymnastics.
The toughest moments in Shawn Johnson’s gymnastics career
After the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where Johnson won one gold and three silvers, she struggled deeply with body image. In a YouTube video titled “Body Image Issues: 110 Lbs. to Pregnant,” she revealed, “I started taking weight-loss pills, including Adderall and ephedrine, and experimenting with different types of diets.”
The intense scrutiny worsened during her time on Dancing With the Stars: “I remember at 16, 17, from Dancing With the Stars, reading all these blogs and reading newspaper articles and seeing headlines of people criticizing my weight and my appearance and my personality and my character. It affected me immensely.”
Then came the devastating physical setback in 2010, when a ski trip resulted in severe injuries, tearing her ACL, MCL, meniscus, and hamstring. After multiple surgeries and a tough recovery, Shawn announced her retirement from gymnastics in 2012, saying, “It just little by little gets worse and worse… I need time to rest and retire so I can be healthy for the rest of my life.”
Beyond personal struggles, Shawn has also confronted the broader problems within the gymnastics community. Following the revelations about former team doctor Larry Nassar, she expressed her frustration and heartbreak: “Knowing that USA Gymnastics has failed their athletes so terribly disappoints me and makes me so incredibly angry.”
She has been vocal about the urgent need for systemic changes to protect young athletes. Today, Shawn focuses on her family, entrepreneurship, and advocacy, using her platform to inspire resilience and self-acceptance.
The post “I Was a Disaster”: Gymnastics Icon Makes Emotional Confession About Career’s One of the Major Moments appeared first on EssentiallySports.
