Shawn Johnson Is Going Back to the Olympics 16 Years After Winning Gold — This Time with Her 3 Kids (Exclusive)

"It's this weird, cool, cliché, full circle moment where I get to go back to the Olympic Games with my husband and my babies," Johnson tells PEOPLE

Shawn Johnson East is making her return to the Summer Olympics — this time with a new team around her.

After her remarkable career starting at age 16 and taking home four medals, including one gold, at the 2008 Olympic Games, Johnson East retired from the sport in 2012 and went on to marry Andrew East four years later. The couple now shares three kids together: Drew Hazel, 4, Jett James, 2, and Barrett 'Bear' Madison, 7 months.

Before heading to Paris for the 2024 games, Johnson East, 32, chatted with PEOPLE about her "full circle moment" of returning to the Olympics this year with her "tight-knit" family team.

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Related: Shawn Johnson 'Doesn't Know' If Her Family Is Done Growing as She Navigates Transition from 2 to 3 Kids (Exclusive)

"It is really exciting," the mom of three tells PEOPLE. "It's this weird, cool, cliché, full circle moment where I get to go back to the Olympic Games with my husband and my babies and watch gymnastics. It's really, really sweet and exciting."

While Johnson East can't wait to travel to Paris, her little ones "have no clue" how cool this opportunity is.

"They have no clue. They are very excited about Disneyland in Paris, but couldn’t care less about the Olympics," she admits.

Asked which sports she thinks her kids will enjoy most, Johnson East laughs before replying, "I don't know if they care."

"My son loves bicycles, so we're gonna try to go to the BMX," she says of her 2-year-old son Jett. "But I don't know. I think they'll like anything. I think they like the hype and the excitement of being anywhere."

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While her kids are "great travelers," Johnson East shares she's "absolutely" bringing some extra friends and family members to the games to help her care for the toddlers — and the Johnson East team plans on "going everywhere together."

"We're bringing both my mom, my mother-in-law, and a nanny," she explains. "So, I got really, really nervous at the idea of having three toddlers in Paris during the Olympics with so many people. My husband and I will have to go off and work a little bit, so I didn't want to leave three babies with one person. So we're making it a family affair."

"We are a tight-knit bunch. We are family and inseparable. Even our nanny is truly our family, so we will be going everywhere together," she continues.

After welcoming Bear in December, the retired olympian says, "It's been magical to have three" kids, but admits that she's "still trying to figure it out."

"Three has thrown me off. I went from being someone who thought I could control everything to thinking I can control absolutely nothing for the rest of my life. Three has been a lot," she shares with PEOPLE, adding, "It's been a definite shift in priorities and work, and how we arrange our day and our lifestyle."

While her kids may not care, Johnson East raves she's "very, very excited to watch each and every one" of the 2024 Olympic gymnasts, calling the athletes "such forces."

She also notes how becoming a mom has changed the way she views the gymnasts, saying, "Being a mom of three, I'm more motherly around it."

"I'm like, ‘Are they okay?’ I just pray that they're going to be safe. Do they need a cheeseburger? What can I do? It's more like that thought process," she explains.

And while she doesn't necessarily miss competing, Johnson East admits, "I am nostalgic around it"

"I'm such a washed-up old woman, comparatively speaking," she jokes.

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Read the original article on People.