Olympian Suni Lee: I Was Pepper-Sprayed In Racist Attack

Olympic gold medalist and St. Paul native Suni Lee said she was pepper-sprayed in a racist attack in Los Angeles in October.

Lee and her friends — all of Asian descent — were waiting for an Uber home when people came by in a car yelling racial slurs and telling them to "go back to where they came from."

One passenger sprayed Lee's arm with pepper spray, she told Pop Sugar.

"I was so mad, but there was nothing I could do or control because they skirted off," Lee, 18, 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."

After graduating from South Saint Paul Secondary this spring, Lee became the first Hmong American to participate in the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer.

Lee not only participated but won the gold medal in the women's Olympic gymnastics all-around after Simone Biles withdrew from the competition.

Lee now attends the University of Auburn and competes on their gymnastics team.

Read more at PopSugar.

• Also read: PHOTOS: See Sunisa Lee's Olympic Gold Medal Performance