Suni Lee's success at such a young age has not gotten into her head. The Olympic gold medalist is just like other Asian-Americans that deal with racism and bullying.
During a recent interview, the 18-year-old recounted a harrowing attack that she and her Asian friends experienced following a night out in Los Angeles.
According to Lee, they were waiting for an Uber when a car packed with people threw racial slurs at them. They also urged the athlete and her friends to go back to where they came from.
Suni Lee unable to defend herself during attack
The "Dancing With the Stars" frontrunner revealed that one of the attackers pepper-sprayed her arm. Unfortunately, Lee could not defend herself and her peers for fear that the incident would become a headline.
"I was so mad, but there was nothing I could do or control because they skirted off. I didn't do anything to them, and having the reputation, it's so hard because I didn't want to do anything that could get me into trouble. I just let it happen," Lee said via The Huffington Post.
Following the incident, Lee phoned her longtime coach, Jess Graba. The latter revealed that the gymnast cried to him on the phone following the incident, so he immediately flew to Los Angeles to be with her, according to Pop Sugar.
Lee comes from a tight-knit community full of Hmong Americans, which is an ethnic group within Laos, according to the Hmong American Center.
They are just some of the many groups that are being targeted by racist attacks/
Suni Lee reveals recent Olympic win has a downside
Besides this, Lee also shared how her life changed after winning the gold medal at the Olympics. The teenager was asked to replace her teammate, Simone Biles, after the latter quit the competition to focus on her mental health.
Lee didn't expect that her life would change after winning the gold medal. She revealed that she is always surrounded by people and has been getting tons of opportunities since her big win.
But just like any other person, Lee sometimes craves some alone time where she can be quiet or do things that normal teenagers do.
Her coach said that it was never Lee's goal to become rich or even to win a gold medal. Lee didn't also want to be famous, and she just wanted to go to the Olympics.
Suni Lee competing in 'Dancing With the Stars'
One of the biggest opportunities that she received after the Olympics was to compete for the mirror ball trophy in "Dancing With the Stars."
On Monday, she and pro partner Sasha Farber just made it to the semi-finals. But despite her ongoing success on the show, the competition was never easy for Lee. She said that she plans to focus on her mental health after the show is over.
The Olympic star recently revealed that she's going through something, and she's thrilled with all the support that she received from her fans, according to Yahoo! News.
Related Article: Asian Hate Crime in New York: Man in Critical Condition at Hospital Following Attack
