Olympic gold medalist Suni Lee has revealed that she was recently the target of anti-Asian slurs and was pepper sprayed in an alleged incident that took place on the street in Southern California.
Lee, an 18-year-old Minnesota native, told Pop Sugar the attack happened in Los Angeles while she and several of "her girlfriends, who are all of Asian descent" were waiting for an Uber.
A group passing by in another vehicle yelled slurs like "ching chong" and asserted they "go back to where they came from." One of the passengers pepper sprayed Lee's arm "as the vehicle sped off," she said.
"I was so mad, but there was nothing I could do or control because they skirted off," she told the publication. "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."
The incident apparently took place just a week before she spoke to Pop Sugar for a wide-ranging interview on her post-Olympics life.
Lee, who shot to fame in capturing the gold medal in the women's individual all-around at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, is the first Hmong gold medalist is U.S. history and first Hmong-American Olympian.
She's currently competing on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars."
Other Asian American athletes have spoken up about similar incidents, including the NBA's Jeremy Lin, who alleged he experienced anti-Asian remarks related to the coronavirus pandemic while playing in games.
Related
