Johnson surges into lead at gymnastics championships

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Shawn Johnson looked every bit like America’s next superstar gymnast Thursday night, handling the pressure of national championships with the same high-flying power and confidence she’s been showing all year.

The 15-year-old Iowa dynamo was in the lead after the first of two days of competition, scoring 61.7 points to finish 1.55 ahead of Ivana Hong and 2.65 ahead of two-time defending champion Nastia Liukin, who made major mistakes on two of four events and was in fifth.

Liukin is less than three weeks removed from her latest setback on an ankle injury that has been an issue since last fall. She didn’t expect to win here, and almost certainly won’t after nearly sitting down on her vault landing and falling on her bars dismount.

But with Johnson going the way she did, Liukin might have had trouble even at full health.

Johnson simply acts like she’s been here before, though her two biggest victories have come at the American Cup and Pan-Am Games earlier this year – neither with as much riding on them as this competition.

This is the first of a half-dozen big meets leading into the Beijing Olympics next year, where Johnson is poised to contend for the title of Olympic champion, first brought to America by Mary Lou Retton and brought back in 2004 by Carly Patterson.

“It’s very important,” Johnson said of her solid first day. “Now, since it’s a year away, every day, the competition counts.”

At the end of finals on Saturday, national team coordinator Martha Karolyi will pick six women and an alternate to go to next month’s world championships. Johnson and Luikin seem to be locks for the first two spots.