“She Really Built Me Up”- Fellow Gymnast Reveals How Suni Lee Helped Her Cope Up With Father’s Tragic Death

Published 03/18/2022, 2:00 PM EDT

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via Reuters

The best friendships are the ones where you become each other’s support pillar when the world comes crumbling down. For US gymnast Konnor McClain, that support pillar came in the form of her friend Suni Lee. The duo has developed quite a strong bond since they started playing together in US national gymnastic team.

Suni Lee herself has gone through a lot lately after she was haunted by her victory at the Tokyo Olympics. Winning a gold medal at the Olympics made her feel like an “imposter,” she said.

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Suni Lee helped Konnor McClain to get back in the sport

Like a true friend, Suni has been there for Konnor when she needed her support the most. After the death of her father in December 2021, Konnor was struggling to cope up with the situation. However, when everything was hopeless, Suni gave her friend perfect life advice.

 

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She said, ‘There’s going to be a part of you that’s missing, but you’re just going to have to rebuild. You’re going to have to refocus. Remember your ‘why’, remember why you started, remember how proud you made your dad.”

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Well, that’s an insanely wise suggestion coming out from a 19-year-old girl, but what really matters is that it did the trick. It definitely changed Konnor’s life forever as she said, “I was like, OK, then I got it. Like, if Suni says it, then I can do it. She’s really taught me, and she’s really built me up all the way from developmental camp.”

What happened during the Tokyo Olympics?

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Suni Lee was the second favorite in the Tokyo Olympics as team USA already had legend, Simone Biles, with them. Unfortunately, Simone withdrew from the event at the eleventh hour, stating her poor mental health as the reason.

It was then Suni Lee stepped up and brought home her first ever Olympic gold. However, her victory seeded doubt in her about her ability. She didn’t feel worthy of the victory. Suni said, “I feel like after the Olympics, there’s just been so much doubt in like, ‘Oh, she shouldn’t have won Olympics, blah, blah, blah,’ and it really hits my soul.”

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Although she doesn’t see it right now, she is truly a champion and, of course, a true best friend as well.

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Written by:

Saurav Panwar

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Saurav Panwar is a US Sports writer at EssentiallySports. A postgraduate in Media and Communication Studies, he shares a profound love for creative direction and filmmaking. Saurav is also an avid reader and a literature devotee whose fandom spreads from classics to sci-fi, non-fiction, plays, comics, and much more.
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Edited by:

Pritam Priyedarshi