Before 1976, no male or female had ever

received a perfect score in any Olympic

gymnastics event. And then came Nadia

Comaneci, all 4-foot-11, 86 pounds of her.

The 14-year-old Romanian dazzled the

judges in Montreal to the point where they

couldn't help but give her a perfect 10.

And they didn't stop there; for not only did

Comaneci receive the first perfect score,

she then proceeded to get six more!

Shawn Johnson Shawn had a passion from a very early age to climb, she could always be found on the jungle gym at daycare or shimmying up the sides of swing sets to reach the top. With an obvious interest in anything physical, from "riding" the vacuum cleaner to wrestling with her cousins, Mom and Dad were challenged early on to find activities that would satisfy Shawn.

After attempts at dance class and group tumbling classes, Shawn found happiness in gymnastics. With padded floors and plenty of things for Shawn to safely climb on during gymnastics class, life was very good at the Johnson house. Mom and Dad were thrilled to turn her loose. From tot to teen Shawn was eager to try most anything. A daredevil at heart, she would always gravitate to activities that were physically challenging.

As a result of her eagerness, Shawn progressed quickly in gymnastics and ultimately the sport became her life. Shawn became a student of Chow and Li of Chow's Gymnastics and Dance in West Des Moines, Iowa when she was 6 years old. She began competing at the age of 7. Year after year she continued to have a love for the sport and advanced to the point when it became obvious where her talents might take her.

Though the Olympics were never a conscious goal, once Shawn reached the elite level with success, the next step was the US National Team and their goal is to build the best team for the Olympics. Shawn qualified to the US National Team and through success in competitions, she became one of the top prospects for the 2008 Womens Olympic Team. Shawn placed first at Olympic Trials and secured a spot for the 2008 Olympic Team. From doing what she loved and being allowed to have fun while doing it, Shawn and her coaches had reached a level of success the Johnson family had never anticipated

Nastia Nastia Nastia Nastia

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Anastasia"Nastia" Liukin was born on October 30, 1989 in

Moscow, Russia. Her family moved to the U.S. when she was 2

1/2 years old. Her parents never intended for her to be a gymnast -

but apparently it was inevitable. She was an elite gymnast by the

age of 12.

Prior to the 2008 Olympics, Nastia had become a Senior

International Elite gymnast. She had won two World

Championships, six time World medalist titles, four US National

Champion titles and won both a Pacific Alliance and American

Cup title. In 2005 she was also named the Gymnast of the Year by

the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame and was a nominee in

both the World Top 10 Athletes Award and the US Sport's

Academy Athlete of the Year Award. She even has her own line of

gymnastics equipment.

Nastia's 2008 Olympic Medal count is as follows:

1 Gold - All Around

3 Silver - Team, Beam, Bars

1 Bronze - Floor

BY JEMMABY JEMMABY JEMMABY JEMMA