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“Do I Look Mean or Something?”: Despite Heartbreaking Fall, Suni Lee Hilariously Addresses Why New Gymnasts Fear Her

Published 02/24/2024, 5:15 PM EST

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Suni Lee is finally back on the gymnastics mat, but it wasn’t the comeback she would have liked to make. The 2020 all-around champion was all over the place during her two routines at the ongoing Winter Cup 2024, and as things stand, she didn’t find a place in the top 10 performers of the night. However, Lee isn’t demotivated.

While the 20-year-old would have liked to have a better return, she is excited to be back among the gymnastic faces. But she is seeing fairly new ones at the Winter Cup and had a hilarious take on the same after the event.

Suni Lee on how it’s to be among future Olympians at Winter Cup 2024

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Suni Lee took part in uneven bars and balance beam only, and both times, she fell on the floor. But the Olympic Champion knows it isn’t the end of the season for her, and was busy meeting with new faces at the Winter Cup 2024. However, she noticed the young girls getting intimidated by her, of course, because she is an Olympic Champion, and had a hilarious take on the same. “There’s a lot of new girls, so I’ve been getting to know a bunch of them. It’s funny because they’re all, like, intimated of me. So I just go up to them and crack a joke and they’re like, Oh, she’s so much nicer than I thought. Do I look mean or something?“, she said in an interview after the conclusion of 2nd day.

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It was a disappointing day for the reigning champion at today’s women’s qualification. She started in the third rotation on the even bars but fell twice. Lee wasn’t able to manage her grip both times but made a perfect landing in the end to earn 11.800 points. The 20-year-old then took part in the balance beam but again fell back on the floor as question marks rose on her participation at the Baku World Cup next month.

Will Lee qualify for the Baku World Cup?

Suni Lee finished 26th on bars and her score of 12.900 on the balance beam was only enough to give her the 13th position. The 20-year-old had entered the competition aiming to take part in the Baku World Cup scheduled next month, but with Lee not among the top performers at the Winter Cup, her qualification remains in question.

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READ MORE: Trinity Thomas’s Comeback Story – Recovery, Training, and Future Hopes Ahead of Winter Cup

However, according to Chellsie Memmel, USA Gymnastics’ women’s program technical lead, there could be an outside chance of her qualification. Memmel revealed in an interview that while an athlete is expected to be near the top of the individual apparatus standings to qualify for the event, there were no such specific criteria for the selection. And given Lee’s reputation, her name could well be present on the team sheet on Monday.

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Written by:

Zahid Rashid Dar

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Zahid Rashid Dar is an Olympic Sports writer at EssentiallySports. With four years of experience as a combat sports correspondent, Zahid stepped into the Olympics fold at EssentiallySports. He started his coverage at EssentiallySports with rodeo, bull riding, and Alpine Skiing.
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Edited by:

Himanshu Sridhar