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Crowned with seven Olympic gold medals and 25 World Championship medals, Simone Biles is one of the greatest gymnasts in the world. Tied with Shannon Miller, Biles has won the most Olympic medals by an American gymnast.
At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Biles won individual gold medals in the all-around, vault, and floor categories. She also won gold as part of the United States team, called the 'Final Five'.
While she was the strongest medal contender at the Tokyo Olympics, she withdrew from most of the events, citing mental health issues.
The world knows Simone Biles today for her incredible talent. However, her journey to success was not that straightforward.
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Born on March 14, 1997, Biles is the third of four siblings. Her mother, Shanon Biles, was declared unfit to take care of her children due to drug and alcohol addiction. Consequently, all the children were removed from their mother's care and transferred to a foster home. Biles was just three years old at the time.
Simone Biles recalled in an interview with USA Today having a good time at the foster home in Ohio and felt fortunate to be with her siblings.
“We were really fortunate because we got to stay with our siblings, while most siblings get separated. We had a good experience in foster care. So I can't knock that.”
Later, Biles' maternal grandfather, Ron Biles, and his wife, Nellie Cayetano Biles, began temporarily taking care of the kids after having them transferred to Houston. They already had two sons, Ron Jr., and Adam.
In 2003, the couple officially adopted Simone, six at that time, and her younger sister Adria. Whereas Ron's sister, Shanon's aunt Harriet, adopted the two oldest children.
It was a strong decision taken by the couple to give a permanent home to the kids. Ron and Nellie supported and loved the girls in the same way as their boys. Nellie said:
“There's nothing, nothing worse, I feel than having a child going from one place to the next. They need to have that sense of belonging. I really think it's important that's the first thing that should be done with any child that is displaced, is to find a permanent home."
Nellie always dreamt of traveling once her sons started college. However, on account of Simone, she has traveled a lot more while supporting her in every phase of her career. Biles explained:
“I've been so fortunate with everything that God has given me and all the tools of life. So I never really cared to find out who my biological father was, or really gain a close relationship with my biological mom, which I'm sure she probably wanted."
How did Simone Biles start Gymnastics?
Simone Biles first tried Gymnastics during a daycare field trip to a farm. It started raining so they had to find shelter at an indoor gym. The instructors there suggested that she should take up gymnastics or cheerleading.
She chose gymnastics and the rest is history. Since then, Simone has been advocating support for foster care kids. In 2022, Biles was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by US President Joe Biden. Her story serves as an inspiration to all aspiring sportspersons.
