“The waiting game was something I hated so much, but when I saw my score came out on top, it was so emotional. It doesn’t feel like real life.” The win at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics was extremely special for Suni Lee and the entire USA Gymnastics team. Well, winning an Olympic gold at the age of 18 is nothing short of an impressive feat. Later, she went on to win another set of medals at the Paris Olympics. Lee’s success is indeed a story to behold. But did you know that her mother had predicted it all 14 years ago?

Suni Lee took to Instagram and reshared a Story from USA Gymnastics’ profile that showed Team USA celebrating after the Paris Olympic win. And Lee captioned her Story, “Just some kids who’s dreams came true 🥲.” But it was her mother who already knew the kind of success Lee was destined to achieve. 

On April 30, 2011, Thoj shared a picture of a young Lee performing splits and wrote, “She will be my superstar someday.” This was previously shared by the artistic gymnast, who captioned the story, “mom knows best 💛.” But what’s so special about winning the Tokyo Olympics? 

For starters, it was a time when the fan-favorite Simone Biles had to pull out of the Olympic Games. Biles experienced the twisties, the feeling of being “lost in the air” at the event, as she went on to perform her iconic Amanar vault. But instead of the 2.5 rotations, she did only 1.5 rotations and made a terrible landing. This made her lose her confidence, and she had to pull out to keep her focus on her health. Now, someone had to step up to fill the void left by Biles. And the one who did so was none other than Sunisa Lee.

But it was the Paris Olympics where she showcased her true prowess. She helped the team dominate the gymnastics world with a score of 171.296. Suni Lee overcame sickness and tragedy to achieve this kind of victory. No wonder she was all teary at the Paris Olympics.

And the ones who were the happiest souls on Earth with Suni Lee’s victory were her parents. Let’s see what they had to say about their daughter’s Olympic win. 

Suni Lee’s parents reveal their thoughts on her Olympic wins

Well, like many other athletes, Lee faced a journey riddled with injuries. Back in 2019, she broke her foot just days before the U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Despite the doctors’ advice to rest, she pushed through the pain. She secured second place on uneven bars and third on floor. Later, she dealt with an Achilles injury that limited her movements. And in early 2021, she suffered a back injury that negatively affected her preparation for the Tokyo Olympics. 

Reflecting back on the hardships Suni Lee endured, her mother said, “All the injuries … she has a bad day, then she’ll come home so stressed about it and crying – that has finally paid off. She’s a gold medalist. And I’m super proud as a mom.” In another interview with Audacy, Thoj said, “Yeah, it’s been a long journey for her. 12 years and it was her dream, so I’m so proud of her that she actually reached her dream.”

Owing to the capacity restrictions because of the pandemic, her family could not be there at the venue to watch the victory unfold. So they instead had a large watch party with a dozen of her friends and family members cheering for her. “Even though we can’t go and support her in-person, I’m glad that we could share with the world,” John told CBS Minnesota after his daughter’s Olympic performance in Tokyo. “We’re just all so happy, we cheered her on. We had the full house so we were pretty loud.” 

During an exclusive conversation with EssentiallySports, Thoj revealed her emotional stance as Lee secured the gold in Paris. This was utterly emotional because in 2023, Lee found out that she had an incurable kidney disease. And despite that, she pushed through to help her team secure the gold. Now, she appears as officially retired in the FIG database and is actively trying to resolve her health issues.