Simone Biles’ Path to Success: How Her Grandparents Became Her Parents and Heroes
Simone Biles’ Grandparents Became Her Parents after Mom Starved Her — Now Proud Dad Walks Her Down the Aisle
Simone Biles had a rough upbringing with her birth mother before social services intervened to prevent her and her siblings from being hungry.
Biles’s two other siblings moved in with their great-aunt, but she and her sister were fully adopted by their grandparents.
Years later, in her ideal destination wedding to Jonathan Owens, Biles’ grandfather—whom she also regards to as her father—walked her down the aisle.
Simone Biles went through a lot in her early years before rising to fame as a gymnast. Her original mother was found incompetent to parent her and her brothers, so they were placed in foster care.
Even after twenty years, Biles’s memories of her time in foster care are still quite clear. She would play in the backyard, work hard in school, and converse with her older brothers, who slept in different rooms, through the vents.
At night, she would also slip into her brother’s room to see how he was doing. She was afraid that when she awoke in the morning, her brother would have moved on to a new foster family.
These days, Biles donates clothing and school supplies to kids in the foster system as a volunteer. Although some may view this as a PR stunt, the gymnast, who understands what it’s like to be one, sees it as much more than that. She once stated:
“Being a foster child, I understand precisely how it is and how you feel. I am able to speak up for them. I can support them, reassure them that they’re not alone, and assure them that everything will work out.”
She participates in a program called Mattress Firm Foster Kids, which organizes six yearly drives to gather useful items for foster children and their families. Forty-five US states and 115 charity organizations are connected to the initiative.
At 26 years old, Biles has matched Russian Larisa Latynina’s record with 32 Olympic and world medals. With her seven Olympic medals, Biles has tied Shannon Miller for the record for most American gymnast triumph in the esteemed Games.
Biles is adamant that she is not the “next” big thing when it comes to athletes. “I’m not the next Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps – I’m the first Simone Biles,” she would tell others.
And Biles, at 26, has proven herself to be among the best athletes in the world. She is among the best gymnasts the world has ever seen, and she doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
When Biles, then just sixteen, won two gold medals at the 2013 World Championship, she first became well-known throughout the world. She subsequently added four more golds in 2014 and 2015 to cap off her successful run.
Wedding of Simone Biles’ Dreams
Biles has put gymnastics on hold for the time being after stopping everyone’s breath with her incredible professional career. She recently tied the knot in a straightforward court ceremony with her partner Jonathan Owens.
The charming pair started dating after meeting on the dating app Raya. On Valentine’s Day 2022, Owens proposed to her on one knee while holding a three-carat diamond.
She chose to wear a $120 tiered white dress instead of spending a million on her wedding gown. Also, the heels she wore to the court wedding were on sale for just $35, down from their original $58 list price.
The gymnast champion accessorized her ensemble with matching pendant necklace, drop earrings, and a high ponytail. Her unadorned appearance was a result of their court wedding, which made them legally wed in the US.
On May 6, the Owens were getting ready for a much larger wedding in Cabo. Their destination wedding took months to plan, but their US wedding was something they didn’t really plan for.
In order to make sure everything was perfect for her lavish wedding, Biles decided to engage with a wedding planner. Her gown was not what she had imagined when she had Galia Lahav make it.
Biles gradually fell in love with the gown the designer built her, which had a corseted bodice, a ballgown skirt, and a high slit. “I think this is exactly how brides are supposed to feel: luxurious, beautiful, kind of on top of the world,” she commented on the dress.
144 members of the couple’s family and friends witnessed the couple’s vow exchange on the big day. The altar was adorned with traditional white flowers and greenery, and Biles forced her to walk with her father Ronald by her side.
Paul, one of Biles’ uncles, officiated the wedding, adding to the specialness of the occasion. There was also Biles’s grandmother-turned-mother.
On Friday night, there was a rehearsal supper before the big wedding. Owens was dressed in a white suit and shorts, while Biles was wearing a stunning bejeweled minidress.
At the rehearsal dinner, Owens’ mother, Arthurine Cannon, escorted him down the aisle in the same manner that Biles’ father did for her.
Biles’ biological mother was not present during any of the celebrations following everything that had transpired. In fact, as soon as the adoption papers were signed, she was cut off from her children’s lives.
Shanon, Biles’ mother, disclosed in an exclusive interview that her father Ronald forbade her from speaking to or even seeing her kids. Simone and her younger sister Adria were only six at the time.
The children were placed in foster care before being adopted because Shanon was unable to care for them due to her substance misuse. “It was hard to give up my kids but I had to do what I had to, I wasn’t able to care for them,” she said.
Since Biles’ biological father abandoned the family when his kids were still very small, Shanon was the only parent raising her four children at the time. The children were frequently starving, with Shanon giving the stray cat that wandered around their home preference when it came to food.
Biles recounted, “She fed it every time, but she never fed us.” That’s why the gymnast didn’t like cats in the first place: her mother fed a stray cat instead of her kids.
When the situation became unbearable, neighbors began to worry about the children’s wellbeing. After getting in touch with social services, the four Biles children were removed from their mother’s care.
Biles’ challenging upbringing served as her inspiration to succeed in life and ensure that she would never have to go through anything similar again. Biles doesn’t recall much about being in foster care, but she does recall being taken from her birth mother and believing they would return to a challenging circumstance.
She was in the system for three years, waiting impatiently for her grandfather to make an appearance. Every time my grandfather and I had a visit, I became really excited. I had always wanted to see him enter the foster home.
But when she and her younger sister were adopted by her maternal grandparents, everything changed for her. At the age of six, Biles was exposed to gymnastics shortly after her adoption.
Everything Robert and Nellie Taught Her
Biles was first exposed to the sport that would transform her life while on a field trip to a gymnasium as a child. When she visited, the coaches immediately noticed something in Biles, and they sent her a note when she got home.
Biles was urged to sign up for gymnastics lessons, and Robert and Nellie were eager to comply. The Olympian attributes her ability to achieve her goals to her parents’ commitment. She would frequently post about her parents for public viewing on social media.
“I appreciate everything you’ve given up since the beginning so I can pursue my goals. Above all, I want to thank my parents for supporting me during both my highs and lows,” Biles remarked.
Nellie did not accept her grandkids as her own children right away. She tried her hardest to nurture them and provide for them, but she understood that it wasn’t the same as truly loving them as her own.
She knew she was a true mother when the moment came to understand she would sacrifice anything for Simone and Adria. Since Shanon was Ronald’s former partner’s daughter, Nellie is not biologically connected to the Biles sisters.
Nellie, however, loved her grandchildren dearly, and they grew up to be her own daughters. “I don’t know the exact date, but my heart just made room,” she stated.
Nellie was a huge fan of Biles’s gymnastics career. She was offered a choice when she was in the ninth grade: start homeschooling while improving to the elite level of gymnastics, or stay in school and not advance to that level.
Not having experienced things that girls her age would have meant being homeschooled. Nellie informed her that she would not be participating in extracurricular activities, attending prom, or hanging out with her classmates.
Nellie and Ronald did not coerce Biles into making that choice. She cried for a few days before saying she would decide on her own, as they had wanted.
Even when she was unwell, Biles never skipped a day of gymnastics practice. Her parents supported her throughout her career and never wavered.
Nellie encouraged Shanon to watch Simone participate in 2013 at one of her competitions outside of Chicago. Because Shanon and Nellie were so close, Nellie explained that she felt compelled to check on Simone’s progress.
Regretfully, Shanon’s appearance confused Biles and the audience. She became sidetracked during the tournament and fell during her turn.
Despite Nellie being present, she also introduced herself to the guests as “Simone’s mom”. Biles won her first world title three months after the event.
Ronald and Nellie opened the World Champions Centre in Spring, Texas, the following year. They chose to open their own gym so Biles could continue training with Aimee Boorman, her longtime coach, as she moved gyms due to work obligations.
Aside from Biles, a lot of ambitious gymnasts call the gym home. In the hopes that their daughter would one day follow in Simone Biles’ footsteps, even parents from Houston travel forty miles to come to the World Champions Centre.
Friends told Ronald and Nellie over the years that they had altered history, especially in the area of gymnastics. A buddy posted on Facebook, saying, “Your decision years ago literally impacted the history of gymnastics.”
As Biles withdrew from many events in the Tokyo Olympics, she was on her way to creating history once more. Many people disapproved of her choice to leave, but the gymnast insisted that it was the best victory of all because, at last, she gave her mental health the attention it deserved.
Biles was confused since it was her first time seeing her parents not in the stands. Her parents had never missed an Olympic competition before, and she claimed that the atmosphere at the games was unmatched.
“We are only allowed to leave our rooms for breakfast, lunch, and dinner while we are under quarantine. Everyone had specific expectations of us,” she recounted. She decided to pull out, and her first action upon getting back to Houston was to visit her parents.
During the Tokyo Olympics, she wrote on Instagram, “They mean the world to me,” about her parents. Shortly before she withdrew from the tournament, she made the post.
Biles turns to her parents for solace. She sees the two of them as role models in many areas, including parenting, love, and support. She says she takes their advise to heart and that her mother, Nellie, frequently offers her guidance on many matters.
She will be able to apply the lessons she has learned to her marriage to Owens now that she is married. Despite this new trip she’s on as a wife, viewers should expect her bond with her parents to continue growing.
