American gymnast Suni Lee, Olympic gold medalist, says she gained 45 pounds because of kidney problem: ‘I couldn’t do a somersault’
In April, Suni Lee announced that she would end his career at Auburn because of a kidney problem. This problem caused him to gain 45 pounds.
The 2020 Olympic gold medalist was not cleared by Auburn doctors, and it took a toll on her physically.
“I couldn’t fit into any of my clothes. My eyes were swollen shut. It was so scary,” she said. interview with USA Today.
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Auburn Suni Lee looks on during the individual competition at Dickies Arena. Fort Worth, Texas, April 14, 2022. (Greg Nelson/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
“I haven’t had a really bad day in a while. But at first it was like waking up swollen. My fingers were so swollen they wouldn’t fit in my grips and I couldn’t hold them up .the bar,” she continued.
Lee said she had to change her diet to reduce sodium because she was retaining water, which was causing her body to bloat.
“I couldn’t do a flip. … So it was really different and I had to learn how to get out of it,” she said.
Lee did not specify what her illness was or what type of treatment she was undergoing, aside from a simple change in diet. In fact, she seems to insinuate that the problem is still with us.
“We’re always trying to balance it all, because I have good days and bad days,” she said. “But on good days I take advantage of what I’m able to do, and on bad days I just do the basics and try to stay as safe as possible.”
Sunisa Lee of Team USA in action during the Women’s Balance Beam Final on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Center on August 3, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
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Lee won gold at Individual general competition in Tokyo, a silver medal with the team and a bronze on the uneven bars. She also won a national championship last year with the Tigers.
She returned to action in August and won a bronze medal at the U.S. Championships on the balance beam, but she declined an invitation to attend the U.S. team selection camp for the world championships in order to focus on next year’s matches in Paris.
“I just decided that I didn’t want to rush and push my body, and even risk something happening, so that I could prepare for the Olympic year,” she added.
USA’s Sunisa Lee during the Women’s Balance Beam Final at the Ariake Gymnastics Center on the eleventh day of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Japan. Photo date: Tuesday August 3, 2021. (Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)
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Lee’s quest for Paris will intensify during the Olympic trials in June in Minneapolis, just outside his hometown of St. Paul, Minnesota.
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