Hero’s welcome for Olympian Suni Lee

It was a hero’s welcome in the east metro for Olympic gold, silver, and bronze medalist Suni Lee.

With homemade signs and shirts, Lee was welcomed home by hundreds of people in Maplewood and St. Paul. Beginning with a parade – starting at the intersection of Arlington & White Bear Avenue and ending outside Aldrich Arena – Lee eventually made it to a stage where the hundreds of people waited to hear from the champion.

Before Lee took the stage, Governor Tim Walz, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, Senator Foung Hawj and other community leaders spoke to the crowd to congratulate Lee, celebrate her Asian American culture, and thank her parents.

“The sense of humility, the sense of joy that she brought, we can’t tell you how grateful we are,” Governor Walz said to Lee’s parents.

When it was her turn to speak, Lee kept her message short and sweet, but powerful enough to last a lifetime.

“There’s a lot of young girls and boys out here,” the gold medalist said to the crowd. “I just want to say that if you ever want to reach your dreams, please try and go for it,” Lee added.

“You never know how far you’re going to get 53 and it’s just truly amazing when you do reach your dreams.”

Lee will now head to the University of Auburn where she’ll be part of the gymnastic program. As for a run at the 2024 summer games in Paris … Lee didn’t mention anything but a couple speakers at Sunday’s celebration said they hope to watch her compete there.