Winner of Season 8 – Shawn Johnson

Full name: Shawn Machel Johnson
Country represented: United States
Date of birth: January 19, 1992 (1992-01-19)
Place of birth: Des Moines, Iowa
Home town: Des Moines, Iowa
Height: 4 feet 9 inches (145 cm)
Discipline: Women’s artistic gymnastics
Level: Senior International Elite
Years on national team Club: 2004 – Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute
Head coach(es:) Liang Chow
Assistant coach(es): Liwen Zhuang

Shawn Machel Johnson (born January 19, 1992) is an American artistic gymnast. She is the 2008 Olympic women’s balance beam gold medalist, the individual all-around silver medalist, the 2007 all-around World Champion, and the 2007 and 2008 U.S. all-around champion.

Honors and awards

Johnson was one of only two female athletes to appear on AOL’s 100 most searched females on the Internet for 2009. She ranked 27th.

A scientific poll commissioned by Forbes magazine concluded Johnson was “America’s Most-Liked Sports Figure” in 2009.

ESPN announced Johnson’s nominations for the 2009 “Best Female U.S. Olympian” and “Best Breakthrough Performance” ESPY Awards on June 25, 2009. The announcement follows Johnson’s nominations for favorite “Female Reality/Variety Star” and “Athlete – Female” 2009 Teen Choice Awards. Johnson eventually won the ESPY for “Best Female U.S. Olympian” and “Athlete – Female” Teen Choice Award, the latter for the second consecutive year.

On April 15, 2009 Johnson was awarded the prestigious AAU James E. Sullivan Award. The annual award honors the USA athlete who best represents “the qualities of leadership, character, sportsmanship, and the ideals of amateurism.”

Johnson ranked fifth in the Associated Press’ 2008 Female Athlete of the Year voting.

Johnson was the winner of the 2008 Teen Choice Award for best female athlete, although she was not able to accept the honor in person because of Olympic training commitments. She was the first gymnast to be nominated for the award.

A life-sized bronze sculpture of Johnson has been placed at an exhibit honoring the gymnast at the Iowa Hall of Pride in Des Moines, Iowa.

On September 7, 2007, Johnson received the “Longines Prize for Elegance” in Stuttgart, Germany, along with Japan’s Hiroyuki Tomita. The prize is given in recognition of athletes who demonstrate remarkable elegance in the course of an international competition at world level; the decision was unanimous. In addition to the trophy, designed by the Swiss artist Piero Travaglini, recipients also receive a wristwatch from the Longines Evidenza collection and a check for $5,000.

Following Johnson’s World Championship performances in 2007, Governor Chet Culver of Iowa proclaimed October 17 “Shawn Johnson Day” in the state.

Dancing With the Stars

In February 2009, Johnson was announced as a celebrity competitor on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars season 8, partnered with season 6 winner professional dancer Mark Ballas. She is the youngest competitor and winner in the history of the show. In the finale declared the tightest ever in the show’s history, Johnson was declared the winner over Gilles Marini by less than 1%. She reunited with one of the host of the show Tom Bergeron at the 82nd Scripps National Spelling Bee to talk about her victory.

On March 25, 2009, it was reported that a stalker had been arrested after jumping a fence and sneaking onto the CBS lot. According to court documents filed in Los Angeles, 34-year-old Robert O’Ryan was arrested with the possession of guns, duct tape, zip ties, and love letters to Johnson. Additionally, it was reported that O’Ryan left his home in Florida and traveled to California, believing that Johnson spoke to him through the television via ESP, stating that they would be together and have a child. The Johnson family received a restraining order against O’Ryan and O’Ryan was charged with felony stalking and two counts of carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle.

On April 17, 2009, she made an appearance in the music video “Do You Love Me” by Ballas Hough Band. She is seen in the music video in one of her costumes near the beginning of the season.