Chapter 1 WINNING GOLD It was August 2008 at the Olympic Games in Beijing China Balance beam the final event in women’s gymnastics was underway Shawn Johnson of the United States was warming up in a separate gym She felt awful Her stomach was hurting and she had a headache Johnson’s coach Liang Qiao tried to motivate her He reminded Johnson that this Shawn Johnson competes on the balance beam during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing 4
Johnson left and teammate Nastia Liukin are awarded their Olympic medals could be her last chance at a gold medal in an individual event at these Games Johnson left the warmup gym and headed to the main venue Sixteen year old Johnson had already clinched silver medals in the floor exercise team competition and the all-around event She lost the all-around gold to her teammate Nastia Liukin Johnson had been the favorite to win 6
that event She had come so close Johnson badly wanted a gold medal of her own People in the Olympic crowd were on the edges of their seats to see Johnson perform on balance beam All of Johnson’s years training as an elite gymnast had led up to this moment She took her place at the end of the beam Then she took a deep breath and began her routine She showed strength and skill that had come from countless hours of perfecting each move Johnson finished the routine with a difficult dismount She completed the roundoff with a full-twisting double-back Then she flashed a huge smile She received a score of 16 225 Johnson had finally won her gold medal COMPETITION AT EVERY LEVEL Johnson began in gymnastics when she was only three years old When Qiao met her a few years later he saw that Johnson was very talented The two of them worked together for more than 7
