Story at a glance
- Olympian gymnast Suni Lee, who made history in Tokyo as the first Asian American to take home gold in the all-around gymnastics competition, said she was recently the victim of a racist attack.
- The 18-year-old gymnast told Pop Sugar in an interview she was waiting for an uber with a group of friends, all of whom are of Asian descent, when passengers in a speeding car began yelling slurs at them.
- Lee said that one of the people in the car sprayed her arm with pepper spray.
Olympian gymnast Suni Lee, who made history in Tokyo as the first Asian American to take home gold in the all-around gymnastics competition, said she was recently the victim of a racist attack.
The 18-year-old gymnast told Pop Sugar in an interview she was waiting for an uber with a group of friends, all of whom are of Asian descent, when passengers in a speeding car began yelling slurs at them. Lee said that one of the people in the car sprayed her arm with pepper spray.
“I was so mad, but there was nothing I could do or control because they skirted off,” she said. “I didn’t do anything to them, and having the reputation, it’s so hard because I didn’t want to do anything that could get me into trouble. I just let it happen.”
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There were more than 9,000 incidents of hate targeting Asian Americans since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report published in August.
Stop AAPI Hate received 9,081 reports between March 2020 and June 2021, with nearly 2,500 incidents reported between April and June. Types of reports ranged from verbal and online harassment to physical assault. A majority of the reports were submitted by women.
Lee’s historic victory this past summer made her the fifth consecutive American gymnast to win gold in the all-around event. She also won silver in the team and bronze in the uneven bars.
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