I told myself after 2008 that I was done for good. But they say you can’t keep a gymnast away from her sport. Shawn Johnson Read Quote
Of course, when you’re training your whole life to get to the Olympics, you train for gold. Shawn Johnson Read Quote
In some ways the ACL tear was a blessing. I had hesitated to return to elite gymnastics after the 2008 Olympics. I told myself I had already accomplished so much, and the road was just going to get harder if I continued. Shawn Johnson Read Quote
I didn’t make it a priority, and as a result my knee didn’t heal to the extent it should have. Shawn Johnson Read Quote
I was able to do Classics, the U.S. national championships and the Pan American Games and feel like I improved with each meet, but I was still struggling with a lot of residual pain from the two surgeries. Shawn Johnson Read Quote
To have any doubt in your body is the biggest weakness an athlete can have. There are times when I physically can’t get myself to go for a skill because I’m thinking, ‘My knee hurts really bad.’ Shawn Johnson Read Quote
I had a constant fear, a constant little doubt in my mind: ‘OK, I’m getting ready to do my standing back full on beam and I might re-tear my ACL.’ Shawn Johnson Read Quote
