The UCLA Bruins are on a meteoric rise this season. All eyes are on them, as the West Coast program has been one of the best-performing teams, which has propelled them to 2nd place. While Jordan Chiles has been the poster child for the Californians, the rest of the team has also done extremely well. Especially Emily Lee, who has given talismanic performances one after the other. This might come as a surprise then that she was this close to losing her ability to walk, so much to compete.

Emily Lee was among the most promising junior gymnasts, alongside Jordan Chiles and Emma Malabuyo. Emily even won the all-around event at the Gymnix Invitational in 2020. But the US Olympics trial for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 ended her dreams and hopes when her Achilles tendon snapped. With an injury so serious and heartbreaking, her promising gymnastics career was also thrown into doubt.

But her path from 2021 to now has been one of pain, suffering, perseverance, suffering, and resilience. While the rest of her teammates were building their careers and stealing the spotlight, she had to remain on the sidelines. Worst of all, she couldn’t even walk then. In an interview with the Daily Bruin, she commented, “The rehab from that was pretty intense and was a long, slow burn.”

But Emily looks at her injury as something to learn from too. After all, this wasn’t the only devastating loss she had experienced in her life. At just the tender age of 12, she had lost her younger sister to leukemia. Since then, Emily has been drawn towards healthcare and medicine. In fact, she believes there’s a strong connection between athletics and physiotherapy.

In fact, Lee is also looking forward to integrating her experience as an elite gymnast with what she knows about medicine. She mentions, “It’s totally connecting all the pieces, especially as a gymnast.” The Los Gatos native is also looking forward to helping other athletes in their physical recovery. She has been caught quoting, “I want to work with athletes in the future. To get them back to what they love doing, just like how my PTs did for me.”

Her theoretical knowledge and her experience as a gymnast competing with some of the best of this generation will allow her to bridge the theoretical-practical gap that has forever been an issue in medicine. It hasn’t been easy—juggling her gymnastics career and her studies. Worse were the days when she was doing everything so that she could return to the mats. But she’s not one to give up.

Emily plans on standing tall this season along with Jordan Chiles

While her injury in 2021 nearly derailed her career, she successfully made a comeback in 2023. Since then, we have seen her fighting hard for the sake of the Bruins as well as adding to her accolades. But despite this, there are moments when doubt creeps into her life. During such moments she mentions, “There were so many times where I was like, ‘Why am I doing this?’ But I stuck with it, and now I get it. Hard work definitely pays off.”

But in any case for UCLA fans, there isn’t much to worry about. Since February, UCLA has registered three back-to-back wins against the likes of Michigan, Penn State, and Maryland. But with insane performances like her 9.925 on the balance beam and 9.850 on the vaults against Maryland, she has headlined the UCLA demolition derby.

So much so that she has been nicknamed Lead-Off. Against Michigan State, she was especially lethal. Competing at three events, she registered scores of 9.800 in Vault. She followed it with even better scores of 9.850 and 9.875 in balance beams and floor exercise. With such emphatic wins, there is no doubt that all the eyes are on the beam specialist.

Add to that, she has scored at least 9.900 on 57% of her events on beam. Talk about consistency and being flawless. This comes from having a strong mind and a heart, having the nerves of steel. You know how she has got that. Her numbers have rarely fallen under 9.850. This has helped the rest of the team to follow her and get better and better on the scoreboard for UCLA.

As coach McDonald described it back in 2023 to the Daily Bruin, “She’s been an amazing leader for us the last couple of weeks on the floor, but her leadoff position on beam… really sets a confident tone for the rest of the lineup.” The Emily and Jordan Chiles combination is what is alleviating the UCLA program. But their real test will be on 23rd February, when they will be facing #15 Michigan. And no doubt they will be looking to usurp LSU as the top dog. Only time will tell if Emily and Jordan can do it, though.