Oh Twitter. Oh teenagers. Oh teenagers with Twitter.
Shawn Johnson's super surprising not at all foreseen retirement has spawned a large number of reactions, most of which range from "No shit, we're not fucking stupid" to "Meh" to "OMGGGG no metals for America nowww!" Here are some of my personal favorites.
As always, click to enlarge. That's what she said.
So yeah. Shawn Johnson retired. Team USA remains exactly the same. The end.
I had that same feeling, especially on the US Olympic Team's fb page, and comments like those actually had a handful of likes compared to others. Scary.
ReplyDeleteThat "Are you fucking kidding me?" feeling when reading comments about Shawn's retirement saying that USA won't win the gold medal at the Olympics...
That last one is gold enough in itself!
ReplyDeleteHahahaha. Thanks, Spanny. :)
ReplyDeleteThe sad thing is that many of them aren't even teenagers....
ReplyDeleteI wish she would have done Visas and not made Trials. To show people that she was not good enough. There was no way she was going to be on the team.
ReplyDeleteat least she didn't announce her retirement the day 1 of VISA (a la Nastia), I'm sure the Russians, romanians and chinese are having parties right now because they know USA doesn't have a shot at gold without Shawn, no USA will finsih after after Spain in team finals because the world is going to end. And that was so surprising, she was a lock for the team. Nobody understood she was doing to retire when she was shopping at classics and when her book would come out the week of VISA. whatever.
ReplyDeleteSo when/if the USA wins the gold medal, I can't wait to see all the reports about how our girls did it "even after the loss of team leader Shawn Johnson."
ReplyDeleteWe cannot educate the masses, Spanny. There are just too many of them.
I like Shawn. Sure - she wasn't going to make the team but she obviously knew that. And sure, her fans may not/do not understand that, but that's because Shawn has attracted an entire new group of fans to gymnastics. She's been incredible for the sport simply because people love her and they pay more attention to gymnastics because they love her. I don't think that makes the fans stupid - it just means that she's the only one they follow, which is super impressive for her.
ReplyDeletewell said!
DeleteSpanny, your blog post makes these stupid posts somewhat bearable.
ReplyDeleteI like Shawn. I loved watching her in Beijing, and I loved that on top of being a great gymnast, she also seemed really nice and normal. But I also didn't think she had a shot at making the Olympic team.
I feel really bad for the girls who do have a shot at making the Olympic team - Jordyn, McKayla, Aly, Bross, etc. - because I feel like Shawn and Nastia have been stealing attention away from them. Yes, Shawn and Nastia trained for the Olympics every day since they were like five. So have Jordyn, McKayla, Aly, Bross, and all of the other Olympic contenders. I just hope that after the Olympics and all of the fluff pieces they get the recognition they deserve.
How did all these people NOT see this one coming?
ReplyDeleteNo sweat, Chow is all good he's got that Fab Gab girl now.
I like Shawn, but I'm not seeing the link between her retiring and the US's chances for gold decreasing. Four years ago, she was a huge asset for the team. Now, not so much.
ReplyDeleteI can only see your first two pictures, not the last three at all. Anyone else having that problem?
ReplyDeleteI LOLed the the unintended pun comment and the one saying there better be some good looking replacements.
ReplyDeleteI think Shawn and Nastia "stealing attention" from Jordyn, McKayla, et al is probably a blessing. John Geddert has been trying to reduce distractions for Jo and I bet he secretly thanks the Beijing girls for absorbing some of the pre-Olympic spotlight. We'll see how much attention he can keep off his golden girl after Visa's and Trials!
ReplyDeleteWho the f is "Kayla Maroney". God, these people who think SJ was the US hopes for gold make me worry. SHE WASN'T EVEN GOING TO MAKE THE TEAM, YOU CRIPPLES! Ugh. I'm moody because I'm tired. Thanks for making fun of this, though. It made me smile!
ReplyDeleteAhh, these are priceless!
ReplyDeleteI was a bit taken aback at the "Shawn got dealt a shitty hand by life..." I want to be dealt the same shitty hand and be a millionaire before 20 too! Pile that shit on please!!!
ReplyDeleteAhh, I found more little gems on twitter. I'm not sure how to take a screenshot, but I'll tell you what it said anyway.
ReplyDelete"Cannnot wait for the olympics to start and stare at Nastia Luiken and Shawn Johnson."
"lol shawn johnson is retiring? shes like 20 years old ..."
"Shawn Johnson retired. I'm not watching the Gymnastics portion of the Olympics then. That was my only reason. :("
"Shawn Johnson retired... there is no point in watching the #olympics"
"American gymnast Shawn Johnson forced to retire aged just 20"
"Shawn Johnson is a gymnast. She was going to be in the Olympics."
I can't wait for the Nastia Liukin posts. She's also not going to make it to the Olympics. If she does OMFG!!! She would need an AMAZING bar routine, something I am not sure she can do. No veterans will make the Olympics, the young generation are capable without the old farts.
ReplyDeleteThe "young generation"? "Old farts"? You sound just as stupid as the people in those tweets.
DeleteWHO THE FUCKING HELL IS KAYLA MARONEY?
ReplyDeleteI cannot WAIT until Nastia Liukin doesn't make the team and someone has to educate the masses about how she actually DIDN'T CUT THE MUSTARD - as opposed to it being some kind of big injustice.
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of telling when NONE of my friends, even some former gymnasts, know what the heck is going on in Elite gym. For instance, I had two friends FB me during Day 2 of Visas - "What happened to Nastia?????????????????" So that's where the masses are at. At least these guys knew she sucked.
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ReplyDeleteThe best one is the one about missing her doing the splits, because I don't think she ever managed to hit 180 in her leaps.
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