| Shawn Johnson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name: | Shawn Johnson East |
| Born: | January 19, 1992 |
| Birth Hometown: | Des Moines, Iowa |
| Occupation: | Gymnast |
| Known for: | Gymnastics |
Shawn Machel Johnson East (born January 19, 1992) is an American former artistic gymnast. She is the 2008 Olympic balance beam gold medalist and team, all-around and floor exercise silver medalist.
Personal Life[]
Johnson was born in Des Moines, Iowa, the daughter of Doug and Teri Johnson. Her parents enrolled her in a gymnastics class at age three after they noticed her climbing cabinets and jumping off tables. At age six, Johnson was one of Liang Chow's first students when he opened a gymnastics school in West Des Moines. She is a devout Christian.
Johnson attended Valley High School. She was on the honor roll, and liked to attend football games, and dances. Through 2008, Johnson maintained a more balanced lifestyle than typical of elite female gymnasts. She limited her gymnastics training to 25 hours per week, as opposed to the more typical 40 hours.
Johnson left public school in the spring of 2009. She and her mother relocated to Los Angeles, California before appearing on Dancing With the Stars. As of 2010, she finished high school with a private tutor. She enrolled at Vanderbilt University in 2013, but withdrew before classes began.
Johnson is married to Andrew East, former long snapper for the Vanderbilt football team. They were engaged in July 2015 at Wrigley Field during a Chicago Cubs game and were married on April 16, 2016, in Franklin, Tennessee. They live in Nashville, Tennessee.
In November 2015, she revealed that she suffered from an eating disorder in 2008 in the lead-up to the 2008 Olympics. She admitted she only used to eat around 700 calories per day – less than half of the minimum recommended calorie intake for a 16-year-old girl.
In October 2017, she revealed through a YouTube video that she had been pregnant but suffered a miscarriage.
Gallery[]
Shows appeared[]
- Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
- Dancing with the Stars
- The Apprentice
- Skin Wars
- Celebrity Family Feud