Ahead of team competition, Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles encouraged Suni Lee to “walk out like you’re the reigning Olympic champion.” – Exclusive

For U.S. gymnast Suni Lee, profitable the all-around gold medal at Tokyo 2020 was a dream come true.

An sudden burden, too.

The then-18-year-old discovered herself abruptly thrust into the worldwide highlight, the subsequent in a protracted line of Olympic legends to say the crown together with Nadia Comaneci, Nastia Liukin and Simone Biles.

Lee instructed reporters she had imposter syndrome.

It’s one thing that’s caught together with her, whilst she’s defied all the percentages to make it to the Olympic Video games Paris 2024 regardless of a kidney-related sickness {that a} yr in the past seemed to threaten her return journey to the Video games.

Teammates Biles and Jordan Chiles may really feel the self-doubt, Lee instructed Olympics.com, encouraging her to personal her greatness in a heart-to-heart forward of Tuesday’s (30 July) ladies’s workforce remaining.

“They had been identical to, ‘You must stroll out just like the reigning Olympic champion,” she instructed us completely. “As a result of they see it within the health club that I simply really feel a bit of bit extra nervous or tense.

“I really feel like I’ve been attempting to channel that a bit of bit extra,” she continued. “It’s undoubtedly displaying in my gymnastics.”

Over the past week in Paris, Lee has received three medals, workforce gold and all-around and uneven bars bronze. Her all-around medal was the primary for a reigning Olympic champion since Comaneci took gold in 1976 and following it up with silver in 1980.

Solely 12 ladies, together with Biles, personal two Olympic all-around medals.

Lee’s six whole Olympic medals are at present tied with Aly Raisman for third by an American gymnast. She’ll go for medal quantity seven – shifting to a tie for second place with Shannon Miller – in Monday’s (5 August) steadiness beam remaining.

“[I’m] simply having fun with each single second,” she mentioned. “It’s simply been actually enjoyable.”