What the World Is Saying about Shawn Johnson It’s the full, behind-the-scenes story of how a young woman who won Olympic gold on the balance beam learned new lessons about balance― as well as love, faith, and what winning really means. In Winning Balance, for the first time Shawn reveals her journey so far: her against-the-odds quest to become a gymnastics world champion, her flirtation with Hollywood glamour, her growing faith, and her struggle to find herself. What did she want most in life? What kind of success was worth pursuing? Would she ever find true faith, lasting hope, and real love? And after suffering a potentially career-ending injury, Shawn ultimately had to rethink what was truly important. She had a terrifying experience with a stalker and would-be kidnapper. Although she won four medals at the Beijing Olympics, she was denied the big prize she’d dreamed of―the all-around gold medal. Her modest upbringing in Iowa made elite competition unlikely. Her first gymnastics coach told her family she lacked talent. You’ve also seen her land on her feet―with her trademark smile―even when things haven’t gone her way.ĭespite achieving more success and celebrity in her first two decades than most people experience in a lifetime, things haven’t been easy for Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson.

You’ve seen her win Olympic medals in Beijing and the coveted mirror ball trophy on Dancing with the Stars. You’ve seen her perform gravity-defying gymnastics moves. The inspiring story of a pint-size American gymnast with a big smile and an even bigger heart 'synopsis' may belong to another edition of this title. Could she find the right kind of success in life―the kind that doesn’t involve medals or trophies, but peace, love, and lasting joy? This is the amazing true journey of how the young woman who won an Olympic gold medal on the balance beam became even more balanced. And she wasn’t sure she was satisfied with where she was with her faith and God. And later, she suffered a potentially career-ending injury in a skiing accident that forced her life to a halt and made her rethink what was really important. Her loss of the major gymnastics prize everyone expected her to win in Beijing, the all-around Olympic gold medal, was the loss of a dream she’d worked for since childhood. Yet Shawn is no stranger to hard work and adversity. Already a popular role model to all ages, in 2009 she captured the national spotlight again when she won the widely popular Dancing with the Stars. Twenty-year-old American gymnast Shawn Johnson is a four-time Olympic gold and silver medalist a national- and world-champion athlete.

Shawn johnson book winning balance