PARIS — Living in the era of Simone Biles dominance would be a challenge for any gymnast, but Suni Lee and Jordan Chiles are reveling in their own Olympic spotlight.
Not only have they weathered the rare, if precarious, path back to the Olympics, but they are also quickly rising through the ranks of the sport’s most decorated gymnasts.
Lee became a five-time Olympic medalist in Paris after winning his second overall medal on Thursday, a bronze, and the pair helped lead the U.S. “Gold girls” to the top of the podium in Tuesday’s team event.
Throughout the Olympic encore, Lee and Chiles observed a growing lightness and international kinship in elite gymnastics.
“I think the environment has changed so much in gymnastics that it almost feels like you’re at an NCAA meet now,” Lee said of the competitive camaraderie in Paris. “People will applaud after your first pass, like we can smile, we’re laughing, we’re having fun on the floor.”
After the Tokyo Olympics, both Lee and Chiles competed in collegiate gymnastics, where the sport’s characteristic intensity is often colored by team spirit, courage and a unifying exuberance.
Chiles credits the “voices of the athletes” with breaking the icy tension of the Olympic environment.
“We have great voices and I feel like if you can listen and understand, it will bring back that atmosphere throughout our sport,” she said.
It wasn’t just the culture that changed for Lee, who faced an even steeper climb to the Olympic podium for the second time.
After winning the Olympic all-around title in 2021, she found herself catapulted into unexpected, dizzying fame. Stalkersfamily conflicts and an attack of health problems threatened to take the shine off his gold medal.
“I feel like it’s really different because the last Olympics, you know, when I came in, I didn’t expect to win the gold medal,” Lee said. “So, I didn’t know how to take it all in, but in this case I really worked hard to get there. where I am now.”
A year ago, Lee’s body was so swollen while fighting severe kidney disease that Lee says he gained 40 pounds of water weight and couldn’t even tighten the straps to set up his signature event, the uneven bars.
“Having to go through everything I went through, but getting here was incredible,” Lee said. “I didn’t even expect to get on the podium here.”
“I love my medal,” she added with a smile.
In an echo of the life-changing victory in Tokyo, Lee won the all-around bronze by a tenth of a point, the equivalent of a bauble on the balance beam. To return to the overall podium, she had to perform the best floor routine of her career and surpass her stellar performance in the team final.
“Before my floor routine, I was telling myself you got this,” Lee said. “Coming here was the biggest goal, so to get there and be able to make it to an all-around final was absolutely amazing.”
No one in the crowd cheered louder when Lee made her first pass than Chiles, who expertly channels her idol, Beyoncé, when she enters the competition.
“I just want to bring the vibe and engage the audience,” Chiles said of her “Renaissance”-inspired floor routine. “You know, we are entertainment, why not entertain the public in a magnificent way?
They’re not done yet.
Chiles is set to return to the stage in Monday’s final alongside Biles, who is not only her two-time Olympic teammate but also her training partner in Spring, Texas.
Lee only has two more items on her Paris bucket list: bars and beam medals.
“Coming into these Olympics, we all felt like we had something to redeem or prove,” Lee said. “My biggest struggle is probably the beam and bar finals…I’m a little nervous.”
Lee will compete for a medal on bars on Sunday and a spot on the podium on beam on Monday, which is the final day of gymnastics in Paris.
Kaetlyn Liddy reported from New York and Tom Llamas reported from Paris
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
