Shawn Johnson

Shawn Johnson (East) was born in Des Moines, Iowa on January 19, 1992 to Doug and Teri Johnson. She was an energetic and daring kid who liked jumping off of furniture, so her parents enrolled her in her first gymnastics class at age 3, hoping it would be a good outlet for all that energy. By the time she was 6, she met Liang Chow, the owner of a gymnastics studio and the man who would end up coaching her for nearly 20 years; Johnson has referred to him as a "second parent."

In 2005, Chow sent a video of Johnson to the U.S. Gymnastics' National Team Coordinator with the comment, "I believe this kid will help the U.S. team." His tactic worked, and soon Johnson was invited to the team's training camps. By 2007, she was competing in — and winning — the American Cup and the 2007 Pan American Games, where she won four gold medals. She also won best all-around at the 2007 Visa U.S. National Championships. That same year, she represented the U.S. at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, winning another all-around gold medal.

Despite all this success, Johnson spent her teenage years at Des Moines' Valley High School living a relatively normal life — training far less than most competitive female gymnasts her age usually do and enjoying typical things like football games and school dances.

In 2008, Johnson competed in the U.S. Olympics in Beijing, where she won four medals (gold, balance beam; silver, team, all-around, floor exercise). In 2009 – and again in 2012 — she competed on Dancing With the Stars. But in 2010, she injured her knee while skiing, and all physical activity was temporarily derailed. She had reconstructive knee surgery and announced her hope to train for the 2012 Olympics. However, though she continued to compete professionally, recurring knee problems kept her from the Olympic comeback she'd hoped for, and she retired in 2012. Johnson was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2013.

As if all that weren't enough, Johnson wrote her first book, Shawn Johnson, Olympic Champion — Stories Behind the Smile, in 2009. Her second book, Winning Balance: What I’ve Learned So Far About Love, Faith and Living Your Dreams, was published in 2012 and quickly became a New York Times bestseller. Her third book, The Flip Side, came out in 2016.

That same year, 2016, she married pro football player (now retired) Andrew East, a long snapper for the Washington Commanders, and the couple made their home in Nashville, Tennessee. Johnson and East openly shared their personal life experiences through YouTube videos, revealing a miscarriage in October 2017. They then announced their pregnancies the same way, welcoming three children: Drew Hazel East, born October 29, 2019; Jett James East, born July 19, 2021; and Barrett “Bear” Madison East, born December 12, 2023.

Since retirement, Johnson has focused on being a social content creator and analyst — and, of course, a mom.