Shawn Johnson Calls Being Beaten by Friend Nastia Liukin at Olympics the 'Hardest Emotional Feeling'

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More than a decade after Shawn Johnson lost the Olympic women's gymnastics individual all-around gold medal to her best friend, the retired Olympian is opening up about the effect it had on their friendship.

The 30-year-old appeared on The Players Pod with Kelley O'Hara for a reflective conversation about life post-retirement and how she navigated competing against her best friend, Nastia Liukin, in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Johnson and Liukin, 32, were roommates and best friends when they competed for the U.S. Gymnastics Team. The pair helped their team win 10 medals — two bronze, six silver, and two gold.

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"That was actually the hardest feeling I've ever felt to date in competition because she was my best friend … she was my teammate, but she was also my biggest competitor," Johnson told O'Hara.

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Johnson went on to take home the silver medal for the all-around, while Liukin won the gold. "I remember during all-around competition, which was both of our specialties, we were always one and two … and on that day we got to the last event and I remember looking at the scores and thought, 'Crap this is close, this is really close,' " Johnson said.

Johnson — who was only 16 years old in 2008 — said she was "proud of and happy for" her friend's victory, but ultimately, she was also "heartbroken" after the competition. "It was a really hard thing to navigate as a kid."

She also thinks the adults in her life instilled some negative feelings about the situation during that time. "It had nothing to do with our feeling toward each other," Johnson said.

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"The adults that surrounded us navigating competition differently, they taught us to alienate each other whereas we as kids, who truly just loved sport and loved competition, we didn't spite towards each other, we wanted to celebrate each other but the world told us we weren't allowed," she explained on the podcast.

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Now, Johnson looks back at her silver medal win with pride. "In a sense, the silver felt more fulfilling because I knew that was my best," she said.

As for her relationship with Liukin today, Johnson said, "We're inseparable, we are best friends."