Liukin leads the way for a U.S. win

SAN JOSE--A year ago, Nastia Liukin was recovering from ankle surgery and had to concede her U.S. all-around gymnastics title to Shawn Johnson.

If Liukin’s performances this year are an indication, their competition for national supremacy -- and for medals at the Beijing Olympics -- should be spectacular.

Grabbing attention with her long, elegant lines and flying blond ponytail, Liukin earned the top scores on the uneven bars and balance beam Saturday to win the women’s all-around event at the Pacific Rim gymnastics championships with 62.85 points. She won the American Cup all-around event earlier this month.Jana Bieger of Coconut Creek, Fla., was second, at 59.925 points, ahead of Australia’s Dasha Joura (59.20).

Although Johnson did not compete here, Liukin and Bieger were enough to lead the U.S. women to the team title with 245.275 points, well ahead of Canada’s 233.475 and China’s 233.075.

Liukin, from Parker, Texas, earned a 16.65 on the uneven bars, a personal best and among the highest scores on that apparatus since gymnastics adopted its new scoring system in 2006.

“Actually it wasn’t perfect,” Liukin said of her routine, whose difficulty score of 7.7 was one of the highest in the world.

“You know, there’s always those mistakes and I know there’s stuff to fix, but I’m just really happy that I was able to help out the team and it makes me feel really proud to come out on top, first of all in team and individually as well. So it’s like a cherry on top.”

Bieger is returning from an ankle injury. She slipped on the balance beam but was pleased with her performance.

“I’m happy to be out here to be competing again and just to show everybody that I’m back and I’m fighting for a spot on the Olympic team,” she said.

Liukin might have made the 2004 team but was below the minimum age. She enjoyed watching her friend and gym mate, Carly Patterson, win all-around gold at Athens and she’s determined to follow suit.

“I kind of like know the behind-the-scenes kind of stuff and it makes the experience more fun, knowing what to expect,” Liukin said.

Samantha Shapiro of Mar Vista Hills, a ninth-grader at the Windward School, finished second in the junior all-around.

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helene.elliott@latimes.com