2008 Olympic gold-medalist Shawn Johnson of West Des Moines, Iowa, is one of the celebrities appearing on "Dancing with the Stars" during the show’s eighth season, which begins on March 9 at 8 p.m. ET. The cast was announced throughout ABC’s programming on the evening of Feb. 8.
A total of 13 celebrities were announced for the upcoming season, including Belinda Carlisle (singer), David Alan Grier (comedian), Jewel (singer), Lil’ Kim (singer), Gilles Marini (actor), Nancy O’Dell (anchor), Denise Richards (actress), Steve-O (comedian), Lawrence Taylor (football), Ty Murray (rodeo), Chuck Wicks (singer) and Steve Wozniak (Apple Computers).
In total, Johnson won four medals at the 2008 Olympic Games: gold on the balance beam, and silver in the team competition, all-around and floor exercise. Also in 2008, she won the all-around titles at both the 2008 Visa Championships and the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Gymnastics. At the 2007 World Championships, Johnson won the all-around title. She joined Kim Zmeskal (1991), Shannon Miller (1993-94) and Chellsie Memmel (2005) as the only U.S. women to win a world all-around title. Johnson also helped the U.S. women win the team gold medal at the 2007 World Championships, which was just the second world team title in U.S. history and the first won at a World Championships held outside of the United States. She also added a gold medal on floor exercise.
Season eight schedule for "Dancing with the Stars" is: performance show is on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET, March 9 through May 18; the results show is on Tuesdays, at 9 p.m., ET, March 17 through May 12; and the season finale is Tuesday, May 19, at 9 p.m.