is heading to the Paris Olympics, but she almost put her gymnastic career behind her after she was diagnosed with two types of kidney disease.
“There were so many times where I thought about quitting and just giving up because I was so sick, and it was just so hard to stay motivated, watching everybody get better,” Lee, 21, said in an interview with Today on Monday, July 1. “And I’m just like I can’t even get back into the gym and constantly doubting myself.”
While Lee was unsure of herself, she had a group of people who “lifted” and “supported” her. Lee went back and forth on whether or not competing in the Olympics was something she wanted.
“We didn’t think I would be here,” she added. “So getting through all of those events and … everything that we had to go through this week to get to where we are right now, it was just such a hard, incredible journey.”
Lee shared that it felt “absolutely insane” that she is headed to Paris for the 2024 Olympics alongside , , and .
In 2023, Lee announced that she was taking a break from gymnastics to focus on her health.
“I have been dealing with a non-gymnastics health-related issue involving my kidneys. For my safety, the medical team did not clear me to train and compete over the last few weeks,” she wrote via X at the time. “I am blessed and thankful to be working with the best specialized medical team to treat and manage my diagnosis. My focus at this time is my health and recovery.”
Lee later learned that she was battling two forms of kidney disease. When broaching the idea of returning to gymnastics, Lee had to modify her training to accommodate her condition as she struggled with symptoms, including swelling, cramping, headaches, hot flashes and cold spells.
“My coaches have never had to deal with someone who has had two kidney diseases,” Lee said at the Team USA Media Summit in April. “And obviously, I’m like, ‘OK, I don’t know any other gymnasts that have two kidney diseases that have had to go through this.’ So it’s all a learning process. And we’re taking it day by day.”
While at the Team USA summit, Lee revealed that she was in remission and was working on getting back to the same level she was at during the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, where she walked away with gold, silver and bronze medals.
“I’m like, ‘I’m way better already than I was at the last Olympics.’ And I didn’t even think that I could get better than that,” she reflected. “So that gives me a little more comfort and knowing that anything that I put my mind to, I can accomplish.”
