Lindsey Vonn Lifts Up Olympic Medalist Suni Lee After Emotional Instagram Post

Judging by her passionate reaction to winning bronze in the women’s gymnastics all-around final on Thursday, fans could tell the moment meant so much more to Suni Lee than simply winning another Olympic medal.

In a heartfelt Instagram post on Friday afternoon, Lee poured her heart out, opening up about her journey back to the Olympic stage after battling two kidney diseases last year.

Among the thousands of comments on Lee’s post, one warm response from former Olympic gold-medal-winning skier Lindsey Vonn stuck out above the rest.

“So glad you believed in yourself!!!” Vonn commented. “You got knocked down and you built yourself back up! You deserve this and so much more!! Made Minnesota and the world so proud!!”

Lee’s health issues were so bad at one point that many thought it would end her gymnastics career, and Lee was trying to cope with her gold-medal-winning performance in the women’s all-around final in 2021 possibly being the final time she competed.

The rare kidney disease she developed seemingly out of nowhere sidelined her from training for months, which took a toll on her mental health as well. She disclosed she gained nearly 40 pounds and her body began to weaken, and things just got progressively worse over the weeks.

Seven months after her initial diagnosis, Lee began competing in gymnastics again, winning bronze at the 2023 U.S. Championships and competing in a few other tournaments before landing a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.

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