It’s been 16 years since Shawn Johnson, a 4-foot-11, 16-year-old, captured the hearts of Americans by winning gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Johnson won the gold medal on the balancing beam and three silvers in the floor, all-around (losing to teammate Nastia Liukin), and team events.
Johnson would only compete in one Olympic game. She tore her ACL skiing in 2010 and retired from the sport before making a comeback for the 2012 games. She did, however, live out the moment she “dreamed of my whole life.”
Johnson won the unique opportunity to represent the United States, wear red, white, and blue, and hear her country’s national anthem with Olympic gold draped.
