On June 29, the Minneapolis Target Center was ready to throw open its arms and welcome the homegirl. It was one of the very few times that Suni Lee showed up there for a gymnastics competition. Meanwhile, the contest was one hotcake of this year—the US Olympic gymnastics trials. Amid the throng of Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, and Jade Carey, the Minnesota native came into the competition with varying odds of qualifying. 

However, on June 30, she stood on the stage with tears in her eyes while confetti rained down around her. Now, Suni Lee is on her way to attend her second Olympic Games, having overcome the challenges posed by her kidney disease last year. To become one of the greatest in her nation, only she knew what obstacles she needed to overcome. Let us take a peek at the procedures that helped Suni Lee overcome her illness and accomplish her challenging task.

Suni Lee faced some rare off-court challenges last year 

After a successful 2022 NCAA gymnastics season, Suni Lee stepped in 2023 in the same form. But after February 24, she faced issues in her body. The situation escalated to where she had no choice but to end her stint with the Auburn Tigers in NCAA gymnastics prematurely. Later, she revealed the reason: “I could not bend my legs the slightest, I couldn’t squeeze my fingers, my face was swollen.” Failing to judge the disease only complicated the situation. But in April, repeated tests confirmed that Suni Lee has two rare kidney diseases. That pushed her further towards the mental complications where she couldn’t think of her gymnastics return. But a miracle came, late but steadily. 

Because of her disease and medications, the Tokyo Olympic all-around champion gained around 40 pounds and the doctors were not ready to allow her to move away from her bed. She terms this experience “rotting in the bed”. However, at the end of the year, the 21-year-old started gaining health and her test results displayed the same. Ultimately, in January, this year, her doctor’s phone call changed everything. 

Suni Lee didn’t divulge much on that phone call. Nevertheless, a few things were shared by Auburn coach Jeff Graba, who was informed by the gymnast about the call. The conversation with his mentee remained, “‘I’m feeling a lot better. The doctor just called me yesterday and told me that they think they can knock down some of the medications. So I’m feeling like maybe I want to try.’” Soon, she appeared in the gym to prepare for the upcoming elite gymnastics battles. Still, on the way, Suni had to counter several off-court problems. 

A Plethora of modifications was the need of the hours 

To live up to her Paris Olympics dreams, Suni Lee had to appear in each elite gymnastics contest this season and it started with the Winter Cup. But she wasn’t fully fit by then. So, her coach, Jeff Graba, helped her with a well-thought-out list of training schedules. Sharing a few words on those experiences, she said, “Right now (my routines are) still a little modified, I think I’m at a good spot, though. I don’t want to peak too early. So it feels normal. I feel like I’m going at a good pace. I’m getting all my routines back and working on consistency.”  Her support staffers waited for that consistency to come in full form. 

It came just before the US Olympic gymnastics trials. In the pre-trial contest, Suni Lee participated in the all-around event and thwarted every challenge to put her among the top performers. On the other hand, her mental well-being accompanied her fittingly, which had once taken a toll because of the illness and the bowing out from the NCAA level. But her habit of journaling repaired the damage. Furthermore, the continuous discussions with her coach and gymnast friends also gave her a sense of her mental health. So, now a refreshed Suni Lee can add, “I’m like, ‘I’m way better already than I was at the last Olympics.’” Paris Olympics, here Suni Lee comes!