U.S. gymnast Suni Lee says lack of confidence has been a concern following gold at Tokyo Olympics

American gymnast Suni Lee emerged as a star on the world stage when she won gold in the all-around at the Tokyo Olympics last summer, but in an interview with ESPN on Monday she revealed that she's experienced what she described as «impostor syndrome» and anxiety that nearly caused her to skip competitions.

Lee, 19, is competing as a freshman at Auburn this season and has scored perfect 10s on two routines.

But she said she's battled a lack of confidence since returning from Tokyo.

«I feel like after the Olympics, there's just been so much doubt in like, 'Oh, she shouldn't have won Olympics, blah, blah, blah,' and it really hits my soul,» she said.

Lee went into last year's Olympics hoping to win the silver medal since her teammate, Simone Biles, was the favorite to take home the gold. But Biles, a four-time gold medalist, pulled out of the all-around event, citing her mental health.

Lee said she wants to prove that she earned her gold medal «because I think I just put in my head that I didn't deserve to win.»

«Like imposter syndrome,» she said. «That's exactly what I have. And it's very hard. It was very hard for me to motivate myself the first couple of weeks here because it was like I didn't want to do gymnastics, I hated it.»

Auburn coach Jeff Graba put things into perspective, Lee said, helping her «flip the switch» and understand, «This is what I need to be doing.»

But the spotlight has been white-hot for Lee this season. Graba said they've experienced sellout and record-setting crowds everywhere they've gone. He acknowledged the «intense pressure» and «immense amount of scrutiny» facing Lee each week.

Living up to a gold medal standard has been taxing to the point that Lee said she considered pulling herself out