Simone Biles has pushed the boundaries of gymnastics throughout her career, setting new standards for what athletes can achieve. She holds 11 Olympic and 30 World Championship medals, more than any other gymnast in history, sealing her place at the top of the sport. But now, Biles is making a move no one saw coming. Here is a Kicker! That is not about gymnastics!

Biles is stepping into an entirely different role—sports media. She has joined the board of Religion of Sports (ROS), the media powerhouse co-founded by Tom Brady, Michael Strahan, and Gotham Chopra. Known for producing documentaries and in-depth storytelling that explore the human side of sports since 2017. “Whether I like it or not, I’ve been around the entertainment space for basically my whole professional career. If you asked me when I was younger, I wanted to be a nurse. I wanted to help people. I wanted to be out in the community,” Biles told Variety.

For years, Simone Biles has openly shared that if gymnastics hadn’t shaped her life, she would have pursued nursing. It wasn’t just a passing thought—it was a real possibility. Her sister, Adria, was on a different athletic path, but Nellie, her mother, had already built a career in nursing. Nellie didn’t just work in the field; she co-owned multiple nursing homes in Texas. Her choosing nursing would have been a different story—one rooted in personal aspirations. But stepping into Religion of Sports feels just as natural.

The Ohio native’s relationship with the company is nothing new though. The Olympic champion spent the last five years in close association with ROS, tracing her journey from the Tokyo Olympics 2021 when she was battling with “twisties”, to coming back stronger at the Paris Olympics and creating history like she did. The result of this collaboration was the spectacular Netflix docuseries “Simone Biles Rising”, directed by Katie Walsh. The docuseries’ first episode went live on 17th July, 2o24 in the United States. With a 7.3 IMDB rating, “Simone Biles Rising” lets the gymnast tell her story on her own terms. Seeing Biles’ potential, Religion of Sports soon invited her to join the company’s board as a creative collaborator- the first ever in the company’s history.

Biles’ impact on sports storytelling is well-established as some of the focus of Simone vs. Herself and Simone Biles Rising, the latter going on to secure two Critics Choice Documentary Awards- in the Best Sports Documentary and the Best Limited Documentary Series categories. Her new position at Religion of Sports only deepens that legacy. For co-founder Gotham Chopra, this is more than a mere business move. Biles has been working with them for enough time for this to be nothing more or less than the poetic, full-circle realization.

“We could not be more thrilled to welcome Simone, a once-in-a-generation athlete who has won the hearts of fans across the world, to the incredible Religion of Sports Board,” Chopra said to the Wrap. “Religion of Sports was born from the idea that sports matter and that they epitomize the apex of human potential. No one embodies that more than Simone – with all of her successes and resilience both in and out of the gym. We’ve collaborated for years on multiple projects, so for her to now join our team of storytellers and innovators is a dream.”

Biles is not the only athlete rewriting the script. The world of sports media is no longer ruled by traditional broadcasters—athletes themselves are taking control. Who better to tell the stories than those who lived them?

Simone Biles joins a lineage of athletes-turned-media-moguls

Athletes stepping into media isn’t new, but their influence has never been greater. Kobe Bryant set the bar high, becoming the first and only athlete to win an Oscar for Dear Basketball. LeBron James turned storytelling into an empire with SpringHill Company, producing everything from sports documentaries to Hollywood films. Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Peyton Manning followed suit, founding their own production companies to varying degrees of success.

Beyond production, athletes are reshaping sports coverage itself. Pat McAfee went from a former NFL punter to dominating ESPN’s lineup. Shannon Sharpe left Undisputed, partnered with Colin Cowherd, and arguably found a bigger audience on YouTube. The Kelce brothers’ New Heights podcast is one of America’s biggest sports show, while the Mannings have transformed sports documentary storytelling. Even JJ Redick leveraged his NBA analysis into a prime spot on ESPN’s No. 2 broadcast booth.

At every level, athletes have been part of sports media. Micah Parsons, Mookie Betts, and Deebo Samuel drive content at Bleacher Report and FanDuel TV.