Things were completely different last year. In the Winter Cup 2024, Suni Lee was up for redemption. After surviving her kidney ailments, she was making her comeback. She had to make her place at the Baku World Cup and winning events in the Winter Cup would have earned her that ticket. But her fate had a different plan. Suni couldn’t amass big numbers. She ultimately finished the contest with a tie for 26th position on uneven bars and 13th on balance beam. What a massive blow for the Olympic all-around champion! But on the other end, something phenomenal happened. Someone from Maryland took the top spot in the contest. Now, almost a year later, things are completely different. 

The Maryland native is now in a wheelchair, recovering from her left foot surgery. Suni, on the other hand, is now boasting of three Olympic medals, claimed in the French capital. Nobody saw this coming, for sure! But such an unexpected picture failed to create any difference between those two gymnasts. Recently, Suni Lee shared evidence of it. 

Florida Gators’ gymnast celebrates her special day

Will we witness Kayla DiCello on the mat this season? The Florida Gators gymnastics fans are eager to know the answer. Although we do not have that answer, we know her injured foot fell short of keeping her bedridden. On January 25, Kayla shared pictures of her birthday celebration with close friends on Instagram. In the pictures, the 21-year-old’s left foot could be seen all plastered up. “21 w a boot 😚 ✨”, reads the caption. Meanwhile, she posed with her party attendees with a huge smile on her face. No sad expressions in sight! Kayla DiCello is ready to take up her next challenge. But what led her to such a condition? Wasn’t she recovering from an old injury?

On December 22, Kayla DiCello revealed going under knives once again. In the US Olympic gymnastics trials, she had to bear the brunt of an ACL tear in her right foot. And in December, she underwent the surgery, despite appearing in the training sessions. So, was there any special reason to force her to make such a decision? On December 31, she confessed in a TikTok video. In the video, she said, “So yes, I got surgery on my other foot and it’s different than the one that I previously tore at trials. This was a planned surgery. So I knew I was going to be getting it done for like a few weeks.” According to that count, she does have some time to stand up on her feet again. Can good wishes expedite the recovery process? Well, just in case they do, she had too many, including Suni Lee’s. 

Suni Lee joins the party 

While disclosing her surgery news on December 22 last year, Kayla DiCello got emotional on her Instagram post. She penned, “This year i’m asking Santa for two new feet!” The moment surely captured her pain behind the words. But after a month, her Team USA compatriot brought the entire heaven for her. How? While wishing her, Suni Lee wrote in the comment box, “Angel.” A motivation from the senior? Kayla wouldn’t disagree. Meanwhile, another Olympian came forward to wish her well. 

Aleah Finnegan was there in the comment box. The LSU Tigers gymnastics star and Filipino Olympian wrote in the comment box, “Perfect bday girl!!” Ironically, had Kayla been fit enough on January 17, she would have had to contest against Aleah in the duel meet of LSU and Florida Gators. But now, the 2023 Pan American Games champion is far away from NCAA gymnastics. But college gymnasts, including Grace Murray, still remember her big day.

While wishing Kayla, the Ithaca gymnast wrote, “most gorgeous birthday girl😍” . Others did not hold themselves back from pouring in with their compliments as well! The Auburn Gymnastics sophomore, Olivia Greaves, echoed the same sentiment as Grace while wishing Kayla. In the comment box, she penned, “The prettiest bday girl!!!”  Meanwhile, Kayla’s sister dropped in with a sneaky reality check!

In the comment box, Karleigh DiCello wrote, “Ur so old.”. Amid the banter and teasing, the Gators gymnast knows the path set for her in the future. We are earnestly waiting for her to come back to the mat. We wish her the very best for the journey ahead!