Suni Lee's Net Worth and How She Made It
Suni Lee's net worth in 2024 is soaring, and it's only going to get higher as the Paris Olympics get underway.
The decorated gymnast stood in for Simone Biles in a big way in 2021 at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, earning a number of medals. This year, the teammates are back and ready to get tumbling, twisting and turning on the floor, beams and bars.
She almost didn't think it was possible. In 2023, Lee suffered from kidney issues that she thought would curtail her entire career.
“I look at myself all the time in videos, and it makes me emotional because I’m just not the same athlete I was before,” she told Self in July 2024. “I feel like my mindset switched to the way it was before, where I’m like, 'OK, now I’m just competing for second.' Sometimes you don’t think that you’re even capable of winning anymore.”
Thankfully, she regained her confidence and is excited to get back to work. Find out Suni Lee's net worth and how she makes money.
Related: Simone Biles' Net Worth and How Much She Really Makes as a Gymnast
How did Suni Lee become famous?
Born Sunisa Phabsomphou in St. Paul, Minnesota, on March 9, 2003, Suni Lee was raised by her mother, a healthcare worker and refugee from Laos, and her mother's longtime partner (who she regards as her father), whose surname she uses professionally.
Lee fell in love with gymnastics when she was 6 years old watching Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin competing on TV. Her father made her a balance beam from a mattress, and soon her parents enrolled her in gymnastics classes. She moved up the ranks competitively quite quickly, garnering elite status when she was just 11 years old.
Lee made her junior elite debut in 2016, winning a silver medal for uneven bars at the time. By May 2017, she already garnered a gymnastics scholarship to Auburn University. At the 2018 U.S. Championships, she won gold for uneven bars.
Lee's senior debut came in 2019, when she won gold with Team USA and came in first place for the floor and uneven bars events at the City of Jesolo Trophy tournament in Italy. She suffered several injuries the same year, but still managed to make the U.S. national team and compete in her first world championship that October. She won bronze for the uneven bars final and a silver for her floor routine.
After another injury and the COVID-19 pandemic, Lee made a comeback in 2021 with a first place on bars and a third place ranking on the balance beam. At the U.S. Championships that June, she won silver in the all-around (bested only by the G.O.A.T., Simone Biles) and qualified for the Olympic trials, eclipsing Biles' score on Day 2 and securing her rightful spot on Team U.S.A.
Loic Venance/AFP via Getty Images
At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, Lee won the gold medal for women's individual all-around, the silver medal for floor (after she replaced Biles, who withdrew from the Games) and bronze for uneven bars.
Related: Katie Ledecky's Net Worth In 2024 and How the Record-Setting Olympian Made It
What is Suni Lee's net worth in 2024?
Suni Lee's net worth in 2024 is estimated at about $3 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. She has endorsements from Amazon, Batiste, CLIF Bars, Crocs, GK Elite, Kiss Nails, L'Oréal, LEGO, LoveShackFancy, Marriott, PlayStation, PrettyLittleThing, SKIMS, Target and Toyota, to name a few.
How much does Suni Lee get paid?
Lee's various endorsements are estimated to likely be in the seven-figure range for major brands following her 2021 gold medal performance at the Tokyo Olympics—and only growing by the day, especially with the Paris Olympics putting her in the spotlight once again.
Related: How to Watch the Olympics on TV, Cable, Online, Roku, for Free
Is Suni Lee going to college?
She was, but not anymore. Lee had a scholarship to Auburn University, where she majored in business marketing and competed in NCAA gymnastics. However, CBS Sports reported that she withdrew from college in her sophomore year to focus on training for the Paris Olympics.
Related: What Do the Olympic Rings Symbolize?
What did Suni Lee win a gold medal for?
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Lee won the gold medal for the all-around at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
What is Suni Lee doing now?
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Lee is still competing in gymnastics for Team U.S.A. She will be at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Did Suni Lee retire?
Not yet! Lee is still a competitive gymnast and will be at the 2024 Olympics with Team U.S.A.
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