Seldom do relationships grow as strong as the one Sunisa “Suni” Lee has with her coach, Jeff Graba. This season, the duo has become a regular sight in every elite gymnastics competition. Not only that, but Coach Graba’s meticulously planned strategies gave the gymnast an early advantage in those contests. Plans of this kind were desperately needed, as Suni was returning to gymnastics after a hiatus because of a kidney illness. Meanwhile, Jeff Graba is more than just the Olympic champion’s mentor. He currently serves as the head coach of the Auburn Tigers’ women’s gymnastics – the team where Suni spent the 2022–23 season. So, is she still on the roster? 

This question can have multiple answers, as in the post-Tokyo Olympic phase, Suni Lee had to go through vivid experiences. In the meantime, her NCAA gymnastics part paid the price. 

Suni Lee’s health issue made her find different routes 

“War eagle forever” – Suni Lee put these three words at the end of her tweet that expressed many things about her NCAA gymnastics future. Written in April 2023, that tweet had lines like, “It’s been challenging to end my Auburn career early, but I am thankful for all the love and support. … In fact, this experience has sharpened my vision for the future.” Such a note was expected as on March 9 last year, a joint statement came from Suni and her Auburn coach Jeff Graba expressing that the gymnast was suffering from non-gymnastics health issues and those were keeping her away from the training schedule in Auburn. Notably, Suni has not returned to the NCAA gymnastics schedule since February last year. She had to post her bye hurriedly, as her kidney disease made her hopeless to make a return. 

Initially, the physicians could not track her disease. A further discussion on the reasons pushed Suni Lee more toward uncertainty. However, after certain medical tests in mid-2023, her medical team confirmed that her kidneys were facing the issue. Expressing her situation, the Olympic all-around champion once added, “I just kept getting more swollen…and I think I gained, like, 40 pounds. It affected my whole body and how I looked and how I was feeling.” Her doctors strictly barred her from any kind of gymnastic activities, diminishing her bare minimum chance in the elite form as well. But the situation took a turn at the end of last year. 

Suni Lee started to move her feet confidently as her fitness was improving slowly. In the end, in January this year, she decided to make a comeback, but not in the NCAA gymnastics but in the elite one, targeting the Paris Olympics. That goal made her come back to the Auburn Tigers’ facility, but for practicing purposes. The bond between her and coach Jeff Graba started to fly again. That camaraderie came to fruition at the US Olympic gymnastics trials on June 30, when Suni Lee earned her all-around qualification. As of now, she is all in her elite schedule and has yet to describe her NCAA return. Still, in her one-and-a-half-year stint with Auburn Tigers, she achieved plenty of accolades. 

The most memorable years after the Tokyo Olympic victory 

Suni Lee joined Auburn Tigers after winning three Olympic medals, including her all-around title. Those laurels centered high expectations on her, and the Minnesota native tried her best to match that. In her first year at Auburn, she helped the women’s gymnastics team finish fourth at the national championship. Her personal achievement remained no less shiny, as on the beam schedule, she won the top place. The all-around event ended almost similarly, as Suni Lee ended in second place. Apart from those, she captured eight All-America honors. In 2023, her reign ended early because of her illness. But in that brief chance, she continued to add flares. 

On February 24, Suni Lee had her last all-around performance in NCAA gymnastics. But before coming to that, she had two all-American honors and 18 event titles. All those achievements came in just eight meets. Such a show of talent has been rare in Auburn Tigers’ history. Suni Lee knows that truth and still cherishes her bond with the fold. That might be a consolation for her fans at the NCAA gymnastics level.