Among those walking the runway was Olympic medalist Suni Lee, who made her debut in a pink sports bra and underwear set with low-rise shorts.
Suni, 22, told Marie Claire ahead of the show that she was stepping outside of her “comfort zone“ by walking the runway. “Growing up, I didn’t see many girls who looked like me in spaces like this. To now be here as an athlete, as someone who’s worked so hard to achieve her dreams, it feels powerful,” she shared. “I want young girls to know they don’t have to fit into just one box. You can chase Olympic gold and still own your femininity.”
While Suni looked incredible as she walked the runway, she seemingly faced criticism over her VS debut. Taking to TikTok, the gymnast shared a video of herself lip-syncing the following lyrics from Ariana Grande’s song “Successful”: “Yeah, it feels so good to be so young and have this fun and be successful, yeah / I’m so successful.” In the caption, she wrote, “can u guys stop bullying me.”
Suni went on to like a bunch of comments that slammed people criticizing her VS appearance. “Imagine talking about someone who was in a vs fashion SHOW,” one read, while another said, “you were on the runway and they were mad and at HOME.”
Then, Suni replied to a comment that questioned why people were bullying her because of her height. For context, the gymnast is 5’0″ tall.
“girl i got your back. why are people bullying you because of your height💔like u cant control that bro😭🙏,” someone wrote, to which Suni responded, “like literally.”
Ming Lee Simmons — daughter of Kimora Lee Simmons — also said in the comments, “who’s bullying you?! i won’t allow it,” which Suni liked.
Suni later thanked her fans for their support, writing, “i love yall😭🥹 my girls 🤍🤍.”
Let us know what you think in the comments.