Suni Lee Gets Candid About Backlash to Jaylin Smith Romance

The hate Olympian Suni Lee is facing over her romance doesn’t deserve a gold medal, but her speaking up certainly does. 

In December, the world-famous gymnast, who took home a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, confirmed her relationship with University of Southern California football player Jaylin Smith, but according to a comment she recently left on TikTok, the response to her romance has not been entirely rosy. 

“I know that Sunisa will be judged by certain eyes in the Hmong Community because her man is Black,” a fan captioned a TikTok tribute to the couple, referencing the indigenous people she descends from. “LOVE is LOVE, no matter what race or gender you are. Keep doing you QUEEN.” Lee is the first Hmong American to make the U.S. Olympic team and the first to be a gold medalist. 

The TikTok video has since amassed more than 60,000 likes and over one thousand comments, including one from Lee herself.