Johnson mixes power, grace to become emphatic leader

SAN JOSE -- Shawn Johnson is a gymnast of popping power but with enough grace to make a stutter step on the floor exercise seem balletic.

Johnson, only 15 and in her first year as a senior competitor at U.S. gymnastics nationals, was the emphatic leader after Thursday’s first night of women’s competition at the Visa Championships at HP Pavilion.

A high school sophomore from West Des Moines, Iowa, Johnson led in three of the four events -- floor exercise, balance beam and vault -- and marked herself as a strong contender for a gold medal or two at next month’s world championships. She finished with a score of 61.700.

Another senior rookie, 14-year-old Ivana Hong, who is from Laguna Hills and trains in Blue Springs, Mo., was in second place with 60.150 points. Bridget Sloan of Pittsboro, Ind., also 15 and a senior rookie, was a surprise with a steady third-place performance.

After Saturday’s second round, U.S. national team coordinator Martha Karolyi will name the team that will compete at the world championships next month in Stuttgart, Germany. The top two women at nationals will be guaranteed spots on the seven-woman team (one alternate).

Nastia Liukin, the two-time defending all-around champion who has struggled this season with an ankle injury, stumbled on her balance beam landing, stepped out of bounds on her floor exercise and fell on her vault landing. It didn’t even feel like redemption for Liukin even though she had the highest score of the night on uneven bars.

She fell on her landing and hung her head and afterward Liukin and her father-coach Valeri left without comment, with Nastia in fifth place.

Johnson’s coach Liang Chow said Johnson “had a little wobble on her beam and wasn’t as perfect as she could be on the floor exercise.” But then Chow smiled and added, “I think I am judging from a very high standard.”

Johnson said that while it didn’t look as if she was nervous, she felt a little butterfly in her stomach as she stood ready to make her debut on the uneven bars. “Honestly, I wasn’t that comfortable. I was nervous,” she said.

Liukin has been battling an ankle injury for more than six months. Her precise, elegant uneven bars routine had many in the crowd of 7,497 oohing and aahing but her nearly head-first landing changed the sounds to nervous yelps.

Johnson is the opposite in style from the leggy Liukin. She is only 4 feet 9 but Johnson fills up the space on the mats with her explosive power. Even on the balance beam, where the premium can be on dainty footsteps and delicate twirls, Johnson took ownership with whacks of strength. She did a back flip with a twist, a move she completed from a standstill start.

A couple of other veteran gymnasts who hope to make it onto the world championship team and the Olympics next summer had uncertain performances.

Chellsie Memmel, 19, the 2005 all-around world champion, is trying to come back from shoulder surgery. She made the decision to perform only in the floor exercise, where she was tied for sixth overall.

Alicia Sacramone, who won the floor exercise world championships last year, had a startling fall on her signature routine. Sacramone did the unusual this year, competing as a freshman at Brown and moving straight into the international elite level.

“That wasn’t good,” Sacramone said. Sacramone, who turns 20 in December, shrugged her shoulders and said of the youngsters who did so well, “It’s easier when you have no expectations.”

Defending national champion Lisa Wang of Buffalo Grove, Ill., leads the rhythmic all-around competition. Wang won the hoop and clubs competition and leads overall with 62.950. Rachel Marmer of Los Angeles, the four-time junior all-around champion, is second with 61.300. Julie Zetlin of Bethesda, Md., is third with 60.850. Marmer earned her first U.S. senior title by winning the rope competition. Finals are Saturday.

diane.pucin@latimes.com