Sunisa Lee with her gold medal in Tokyo
(Picture: REUTERS)An American Olympic gold medallist has revealed she was pepper-sprayed in a racist drive-by attack in Los Angeles.
Gymnast Sunisa Lee told how she was targeted while waiting for an Uber with a group of Asian friends.
The 18-year-old told the magazine Pop Sugar the incident happened a few weeks ago while she was in LA filming Dancing with the Stars.
Lee made history at Tokyo this summer when she became the first US Olympic athlete from the Hmong ethnic group.
She won a gold medal in the women’s all-around individual competition after her teammate, and defending champion, Simone Biles withdrew from the competition.
Lee said the group were waiting for their ride after a night out when people inside a passing car shouted ethnic slurs and told them to “go back to where they came from”.
One person even sprayed her in the arm with pepper spray before the vehicle sped away.
She said: “I was so mad, but there was nothing I could do or control because they skirted off.”
“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.”
The US has seen a disturbing rise in attacks on Asian Americans in recent months.
In April, US karate Olympian Sakura Kokumai was accosted while training in a park in California.
