During the Tokyo Olympic Games, Sunisa Lee won her first gold medal as the youngest member of the 2020 U.S. women’s Olympics gymnastics team.
Since then, Lee continues to perfect her skills as a member of Auburn University’s gymnastics team. But like most Olympic athletes, this 18-year-old is constantly trying to outdo herself.
For Lee, that includes perfecting an incredibly difficult move called The Nabieva. It was named after the woman who introduced the move, Tatiana Olegovna Nabieva, and involves “laying out vertically over the high bar, swinging around, then passing over the bar backwards before grabbing it again.”
It was given a “G,” which is the highest possible rating on the difficulty scale. Lee already pulled this impressive move off at the Tokyo Olympics, but she hadn’t tried it in college yet – and neither had anyone else.
In fact, The Nabieva was only created in 2010 and approved for the NCAA Code of Points for college competitions just three days before Lee gave it a shot.
Luckily, this gymnastics superstar didn’t need much time to decide whether or not to include it in her routine. Before the move got approved at the college level, she was already practicing it three times a day!
Still, there was a lot of pressure when it came time for Lee to perform. The scores between Auburn and the competing team, Kentucky, were nail-bitingly close.
Lee started off on a high by earning all 10s on the beam, becoming the first Auburn gymnast to do so. Soon after, though, the moment she had especially been waiting for finally arrived… and she absolutely nailed it!
The moment Lee stuck her landing, she and her teammates began to celebrate, and the crowd went wild knowing that they had just witnessed gymnastics history! And to top it all off, these stellar performances put Auburn over the top with a 197.925-197.150 win over Kentucky.
At just 18 years old, Lee has already proven that she’s a force to be reckoned with, and we can’t wait to watch as she continues to grow!
Watch her unforgettable performances below and don’t forget to share.
Want to be happier in just 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Smile and join over 455,000+ people who start each day with good news.