With the title of the most decorated gymnast of all time, many have been curious how Ohio-born Biles became the ultimate world champion across multiple events like floor, vault, and on the beam.
Simone Arianne Biles was born on the 14th of March in 1997 to her mother Shanon Biles, although she was not able to care for her and Simone was put into foster care. Simone was later formally adopted by her maternal grandparents, Ronald and Nellie Biles, in 2003.
How do you make one of the best gymnasts in the world? Let’s take a closer look at Simone’s difficult childhood and how she got into gymnastics in the first place.
A Rough Beginning
Shanon Biles gave birth to Simone in Columbus, Ohio. She was the third of four children, with siblings Ashley and Tevin, and younger sister Adria.
Simone’s mother suffered from substance abuse since Simone was young. As a consequence, her children, including Simone, were sent to foster care.
Simone opened up to Today about her experiences as a very young child:
“Growing up, my biological mom was suffering from drug and alcohol abuse, and she was in and out of jail,” Biles explained. “I never had mom to run to. I do remember always being hungry and afraid. At 3 years old, I was placed in foster care.”
Speaking to Houston Chronicle in 2016, Shanon’s father Ronald Biles spoke about the aftermath of his daughter’s struggles:
“I got a call from a social worker, and my response was ‘Send them to me,'” he recounted. “That would have been in July or August 1999. We finally got them in March 2000. The oldest was 10, her brother was 8, Simone was 3 and Adria, the youngest, was 13 months.”
Due to the difficulties Shanon was still facing, Ronald and Nellie made the decision to officially adopt Simone and her younger sister in 2003 when Simone was 5 years old.
Shanon’s rights as a mother were revoked, including for the older children who were adopted by Ronald’s sister.
On recognizing her grandparents as her newfound parents, Simone said to Houston Chronicle, “When we came down, it was automatically, ‘OK, you’re my mom, and you’re my dad,” adding, “there was never a question about it.”
Communication between Simone and her biological mother is small, but she has watched her at some national championships.
A Stable Home
Having established a steady home life with her newly adoptive parents, Simone was able to concentrate on her passion – gymnastics.
In the same interview on Today, Simone declares that “my parents saved me.” She continued, “they’ve set huge examples of how to treat other people, and they’ve been there to support me since day one. There’s nothing I could say to them to thank them enough.”
Her first exposure to the sport was on a trip when she was just 6 years of age. After noticing her potential, Simone received a letter from the club that expressed their interest in her joining their team.
At four feet and eight inches in height, Simone was reluctant at first and wondered if halting gymnastics training would give her a few extra inches. “Maybe I need to stop training so much and see if I will grow,” she told Nellie in the early days of her career.
She soon learned to embrace her height, and began her professional career at 14 years old, competing at the American Classic in 2011 in Houston.
The next year she was taken out of public school and homeschooled instead. This allowed her to boost training times, getting up to 32 hours a week.
An Unbeatable Force
Well into her senior career as an elite gymnast, Simone has often been regarded as the best gymnast of all time. She is a six-time US national all-around champion, five-time World all-round champion, and five-time World floor exercise champion (just to name a few).