Martha Karolyi Biography

Before Johnson could win Olympic gold, she had to become an elite athlete. In order to do that she had to go to Wisconsin to perform a specific routine in front of judges who would give her a score. If her score was high enough, she would become an elite athlete. After performing her routine flawlessly for the judges, they informed her coach that she had performed the wrong routine. The judge was kind enough to offer to teach Johnson the right routine if she could perform it right then. Johnson agreed to that, so the judge taught her the routine right there in front of everyone. Johnson wasn’t sure if she would pass, but by the end of that day she became an elite athlete. She also came one step closer to the Olympics. After Shawn Johnson became an elite athlete, her coach recorded her practicing some of her stunts and sent it to Martha Karolyi, National Team Coordinator. Martha Karolyi is married to Bela Karolyi, who was the first gymnast to ever receive a perfect score during the Olympics. Because of that he is a very famous gymnast. Bela and Martha

Everyone who competes at the elite level knows almost all of the other elite gymnasts, so when this new girl showed up and placed 3rd in the all-around lots of people were really surprised. After the US Classic, Shawn Johnson went to the US National Championships where she placed 10th overall, because she fell of the beam during her routine. Also in 2005, she made the Junior National Team. That is when she started traveling to different countries to compete, starting with Belgium where she placed first in the all-around, vault, and floor. A year later, in 2006, she went to the US National Championships. There she performed many difficult skills that earned her the title of US Junior All-Around Champion. That was only the first of many times when she would be a