🏅 Suni Lee, the pride of Minnesota

Plus: Weekend art festivals and bike swaps | Friday, July 30, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Babbel   Axios Twin Cities By Torey Van Oot, Nick Halter and Audrey Kennedy ·Jul 30, 2021 It's Friday! 🌡 It looks like we're getting back to normal summer temperatures, but we might be dealing with this nasty air from Canadian wildfires this weekend. 🏀 St. Paul's Jalen Suggs is heading to Orlando after he was selected by the Magic with the 5th pick in last night's NBA draft. Situational awareness: Northbound I-35W will be closed tonight from 10pm through noon on Saturday. Today's newsletter is 923 words, a 3.5-minute read.     1 big thing: Golden Suni! Sunisa Lee kisses her gold medal in Tokyo. Photo: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images   Sunisa Lee made Minnesota proud on Thursday, winning a gold medal in the women's all-around gymnastics competition. So much so, that Gov. Tim Walz declared today Sunisa Lee Day to celebrate. Why it matters: Lee, who was already the first Hmong American to compete at the Olympics, is now the first Hmong American to win gold. It's a remarkable victory for St. Paul, the Hmong community and the U.S. Olympic team, which was without medal favorite Simone Biles. What she said: The 18-year-old told reporters she nearly quit after her dad, John, was partially paralyzed in a fall from a ladder two years ago. "I definitely didn't think I'd be here in this moment with the gold medal. I definitely haven't let it sink in yet, as I feel like it's just not real life ... the past two years with COVID and my dad." What they did: KARE 11 anchor Gia Vang — also a Hmong American — captured the reaction from Lee's family and friends at an Oakdale watch party. View it here. Who is Suni? The athlete, who's from the east side of St. Paul, trained at Midwest Gymnastics in Little Canada and recently graduated from South St. Paul High School. This fall, she's headed to Auburn University, where she'll compete for the school's gymnastics team. Between the lines: Lee is introducing many parts of the country to Hmong culture, which is big in the Twin Cities, but a mystery to large swaths of the U.S. and world. There's been a spike in Google searches for "Hmong American." "In the height of AAPI hate and the weight of the pandemic, (Lee) gave us something to be proud of and remind our fellow Americans, we are a part of the fabric of the United States and we will continue to thrive," DFL state Rep. Samantha Vang tweeted. What's ahead: Lee still has four more events that she could add to her medal count — with finals each day Sunday through Wednesday. Here's her schedule. She's said her goal is to win gold or silver on the uneven bars and a medal on the beam. This win puts Lee in rarified air — and sets her up to be the face of U.S. gymnastics at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Axios' Kendall Baker said.     2. On tap: Art festivals and bike swaps Illustration by Brendan Lynch/Axios   We're back at it again with your weekend event roundup: 🏙 Check out 100+ Black, Indigenous, People of Color-owned local businesses at The Black Market's final summer pop-up in the North Loop Saturday. ✨ Light up St. Paul at the Water Lantern Festival Saturday night. Attendees can decorate rice paper lanterns at Phalen Park. (Ticket prices cover cleanup costs.) 🎨 The FLOW Northside Art Crawl across North Minneapolis continues tonight and tomorrow, showcasing dozens of local businesses and artists along the West Broadway corridor. 🚲 Want to get back in the saddle post-heat wave? The Twin Cities Bike Swap returns Sunday in New Brighton. 🖼 Summer really is the season of art festivals: This weekend's Loring Park Art Festival has 140 vendors + and the Lakes and Legends Beer Garden.     3. Sun Country is making money and growing Sun Country is planning to buy more planes for expansion. Photo: AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images   Thanks to a rebounding leisure travel market, Sun Country turned a profit last quarter, even before receiving federal coronavirus relief. Why it matters: Sun Country's health means the airline is poised to grow and add new routes to serve travelers in the Twin Cities. Driving the news: The local airline, which went public earlier this year, reported its second-ever quarterly earnings Wednesday. The big picture: At a time when many airlines would be bleeding money without federal help, Sun Country posted a $5.4 million profit from operations, which came prior to a $39.4 million coronavirus rescue package grant that drove profits higher. CEO Jude Bricker said during an earnings call that advanced bookings are up compared to the same pre-pandemic periods of 2019, which is one reason the airline is predicting profits next quarter, too. What's ahead: The airline announced 20 new nonstop routes, most of which will begin service by the end of the year. Full story.     A message from Babbel How Babbel trains your brain to learn a new language     Unlike other apps that use machine learning to teach you languages, Babbel takes a human-based approach. What this means: Lessons are built by over 150 linguists and prepare you for situations you'll actually encounter in real-life. No random words or abstract grammar. Sign up and get 55% off.     4. Catch up quick: This is some icky air You could barely see the sun on Thursday due to smoky air from Canada. Photo: Nick Halter/Axios.   🔎 Several DFL senators are calling for an outside investigation into a former staffer's sexual harassment claims, following questions about whether the allegation was mishandled by caucus leadership. (Minnesota Reformer) 🔥 St. Cloud recorded the worst air quality reading in Minnesota history on Thursday due to wildfire smoke plume from Canada. (MPR News) 💵 A Maple Grove man pleaded guilty to fraudulently applying for nearly $10 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans, using some of the money a new backyard pool at his house. (Star Tribune) 💉 Gov. Walz announced Minnesotans age 12 and older who receive their first vaccine dose between today and Aug. 15 will be eligible for a $100 Visa gift card. (State of Minnesota) 💰 Minnesota's highest paid CEO is Ceridian's David Ossip, at $33 million in total compensation. (Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal)     5. Bye bye Berríos? Jose Berríos said goodbye to fans earlier this week, just in case. Photo: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images   With just hours to go before today's MLB trade deadline, Jose Berríos may be on his way out of Minnesota. Driving the news: The Twins have discovered a stronger-than-expected market for Berríos and already have some offers in hand from teams, multiple sources told The Athletic. Context: The Puerto Rico native has been the best Twins starting pitcher over the past five seasons, but he's set to become a free agent after 2022 and will command a huge contract if he stays healthy. The Twins are out of the playoff race and looking to restock their farm system. Go deeper on the Twin Cities' biggest sports stories by visiting our partners at The Athletic.     A message from Babbel The app that'll teach you a new language in 3 weeks     Babbel makes it easy with bite-sized lessons, so you can spend less than 10 mins a day learning language skills you'll remember. In fact, 73% of users said they could have a simple conversation in their new language after just 5 hours of lessons. Sign up today and get 55% off one of 14 languages.   What we're doing this weekend: 🎭 Audrey is seeing her first Chanhassen Dinner Theatres show tonight and will probably spend too much money at the Loring Park Art Festival tomorrow. 🍽Torey wants to try somewhere new for dinner — send recs for takeout or spots with great patios, please!  She's looking forward to a new episode of "White Lotus" Sunday night. 🚲 Nick is riding his new fat tire bike he bought off Facebook Marketplace. He will also probably watch "White Lotus," and he will say it again: HBO is operating on a whole different level right now. Like this email style and format? Learn more about Axios HQ. It'll help you deliver employee communications more effectively.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. 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