On Tuesday, July 30, after her historic win at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Simone Biles shared an Instagram story of her grandfather Ronald Biles watching her compete.
“My dad & his binoculars is soooo freaking cute,” Simone wrote about her biological grandfather, who, along with his wife, adopted her. Now an eight-time Olympic medalist, Simone was left in foster care when she was only three.
Simone, the most decorated American gymnast, opened up about her childhood. She and her siblings were starving in the care of their biological mother, who was struggling with drug and alcohol abuse.
Long before 26-year-old Simone Biles was flipping and spinning, she was living in foster care with her siblings, Adria, Tevin, and Ashley. Their birth mother, Shanon, was dependent on alcohol and drugs and couldn’t care for her four children.
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Shanon, Simone Biles’ biological mother, told the Daily Mail, “It was hard to give up my kids, but I had to do it. I wasn’t able to care for them.” She added that the children’s father, who was also an addict, was not around.
In an interview with CNN, Simone spoke honestly about her childhood and the difficulties she faced with her mother’s addiction. “When my siblings and I went into foster care, it was because our mom was struggling with drug and alcohol abuse. I was three years old,” she said.
Even after 20 years, Simone still has clear memories of being hungry during that time.
“I just remember, like, us as kids being so hungry and then I just remember this cat that would get fed and not like…us,” she shares in the clip. “And so we were taken and, thankfully, we actually got to stay in one foster home and we were all together…it was some of the best times ever. We were just so excited.”
Adding to that excitement were the frequent visits from her grandparents, Ronald and Nellie Biles, who adopted Simone (then six), and her little sister Adria, who is now 24.
On her Facebook Watch series, Simone vs. Herself, Simone Biles said, “I wanted to take care of Adria because she was the baby. I felt like I needed to look out for her because if family doesn’t, who will?”
Simone’s siblings, Tevin and Ashley, were adopted by Ronald’s sister and grew up in Cleveland, Ohio.
Then, a school trip that got canceled changed Simone’s life completely.
🫶🏾🦋👑👩🏽🤝👩🏾 pic.twitter.com/dnDuHh9aiT
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) August 16, 2022
“I never, ever, thought about gymnastics as a sport to put Simone in, that never entered my mind,” says Nellie of her adopted daughter on Simone vs Herself. “I remember it was a field trip, but it rained so they did not go to this farm or wherever they were supposed to go and instead they went to Bannon’s Gymnastix.”
Confirming her mother’s memory, Simone offers more information to her fans, saying the first time she was exposed to gymnastics was in “daycare on a school trip.”
“I don’t ever remember watching it on TV or seeing pictures in a magazine,” the athlete says, adding she learned by “imitating” other girls.
How it started: How it’s going: pic.twitter.com/rirskHYKIJ
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) October 8, 2020
Since then, Nellie and Ronald have been at every meet, cheering Simone on as she excels in her competitions.
Simone explained that she has a “bad habit” of looking for her biggest supporters in the crowd. She said she feels “kind of nervous” competing without her parents there.
“I don’t feel settled and comfortable until I spot them in the crowd. I get really anxious, but once I see them, it calms me down to know they’re there watching.”
The only competition the Biles couple missed was the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, where fans were not allowed due to COVID-19 restrictions. Ultimately, Simone pulled out of the women’s team final and “four subsequent individual finals to prioritize her health as she dealt with a case of what gymnasts call the ‘twisties,’ where the body and mind fall out of sync.”
Cheering on Simone and Team USA in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Ronald and Nellie were joined by Simone’s husband Jonathan Owens, a football player who took time off training camp with the Chicago Bears to support his wife (married in 2023).
appreciation post for my sweet parents ❤️ thanks for making sacrifices since day 1 so I can live out my dream. but most importantly thanks for always being there for me through all the highs and lows. You guys are the absolute best. I love y’all 🤎 pic.twitter.com/jb45RdZoY3
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) June 29, 2021
Nellie said in a Facebook clip, “It doesn’t matter where we are or what competition it is, Simone always knows where we’re sitting. She can hear me because I scream so loud.”
When Simone looked around the Bercy Arena in Paris for her parents, she saw Owens wearing a colorful t-shirt with pictures of his wife, sitting next to Nellie, who had a big smile, and her dad, whose face was hidden behind binoculars as he watched his daughter.
.@jjowens_3 made it to Paris!
(📸 via @NBCOlympics) pic.twitter.com/haDj6Th6D7
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) July 30, 2024
Simone wrote on Instagram, “My dad and his binoculars are so freaking cute,” sharing a sweet family photo with her fans.
Besides being the U.S. gymnast with the most medals, Simone also supports Friends of the Children, an organization that provides long-term care and support to kids in foster care.
my parents are THE cutest. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/9LUbebFUWM
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) October 24, 2019
The strong supporter of Friends of the Children told CNN, “It gives the kids love and support, which is what they really need. Having that one constant thing means everything to them.”
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