Suni Lee, who won the gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, made an inspirational return to the Paris Olympics after being diagnosed with kidney disease in 2023.
According to USA Today, the Olympic gold medalist announced in April 2023 that she was diagnosed with two forms of kidney disease.
In April 2023, Lee wrote on her X (formerly Twitter), “I have been dealing with non-gymnastics health-related issues involving my kidneys. For my safety, the medical team did not clear me to train and compete over the last few weeks. My focus at this time is my health and recovery.”
She began to experience swelling in her ankles in February 2023, which later became more serious and continued throughout her body, resulting in her gaining 40 pounds at that time.
Lee told USA Today in November 2023, “I couldn’t fit into any of my clothes. My eyes were swollen shut. It was just so scary."
She further added, “In the beginning, it was like I was waking up swollen. My fingers were so swollen they wouldn’t fit into my grips, and I couldn’t hold on to the bar."
There were speculations about Lee’s return to the game as her kidney disease kept her out of competition for almost a year.
But Lee, who remained dedicated and motivated throughout her journey, made a successful return to the 2024 Paris Olympics and left people in awe.
After qualifying for the Paris Games, she said, “It was just an incredibly hard journey. There were so many times when I thought about quitting and just giving up because I was so sick and it was just so hard to stay motivated, watching everybody get better, and I’m just like, 'I can’t even get back into the gym' and constantly doubting myself.”
