Olympic gymnast Suni Lee knows how to deal with pressure like a pro – except when it comes to meeting her childhood idol.
She gracefully ruled the mat and won the gold for individual all-around at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and is now doing flips in high heels on Dancing With The Stars. But, apparently, it was getting to meet Justin Bieber in real life that she couldn’t quite work up the nerves for.
It’s been a whirlwind rise to fame for the Olympic gold-medalist, which she admits comes with some perks like getting to attend the star-studded Met Gala and rubbing elbows big-name celebrities.
“I met Rihanna,” she shared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. “I met Hailey Bieber—oh, my gosh, I love her.”
“I talked to her, and I was shaking, and I was like, ‘Hi, I’m Suni,’” she continued. “And then I was just telling her how I was dancing to Justin Bieber’s ‘Stay’ for my first Dancing With the Stars dance. And she’s like, ‘You should tell him.’ And I’m like, ‘OK.'”
Suni, who has been a Belieber for the longest time, actually had an opportunity to meet Justin at the Met Gala, but ended up walking away – and her reason is adorably relatable.
“Then when I got the chance to see him, I got too scared,” the athlete shared with a smile. “I was like, ‘I’m not doing it.'”
“You didn’t walk over to him and say hi?” Ellen asked, assuring her, “He’s so nice. He’s so sweet.”
“No, I was so scared,” she replied.
She will get the chance to see him again though – Ellen gave her tickets to one of Justin’s upcoming shows. And although she didn’t get to meet him that night, Suni hopes she’ll get another chance someday.
“I hope so, too, because me and my sister, when we were younger, we had posters of him and blankets of him, and the posters have kissy marks on it with red lipstick,” Suni confessed, before jokingly adding, “So Justin, if you’re watching, just forget that I said that.”
Despite her last case of nerves, meeting The Biebs is definitely still on her bucket list. “Yeah, I really want to meet him,” she said.
