Simone Biles can never forget the contribution of her adoptive parents to her life. Completing her redemption arc in Paris, the queen of gymnastics earned three gold and one silver medal. Reclaiming her throne as the all-around queen, the GOAT locket that Biles wore was a testament to her dominance in the sport. However, all this would not have been possible without two people—Nellie and Ronald Biles. 

Originally Simone’s grandparents, they decided to adopt the gymnastics icon when she was 6 years old. And the change of atmosphere worked like magic. Coming out of the rugged foster care environment, baby Simone and her sister, Adria, were greeted with a friendly and caring environment. It was Nellie and Ronald’s love and support that propelled the career of Simone Biles to such a gargantuan extent. Looking back at her childhood, Biles feels extremely grateful to her parents. 

Speaking with Hoda Kotb in a recent interview, the gymnast stated, “If not for my parents and adoption, I wouldn’t be here today.” Born in Columbus, Ohio, Simone Biles’ biological parents, Kelvin Clemons and Shanon Biles, could not give her a suitable home to grow up in. While Clemons left when Simone was still a toddler and has been absent since then, her biological mother, Shanon, struggled d*ug and alcohol abuse. 

Speaking about how massive it was for her to be adopted by Ronald and Nellie Biles, Simone had also opened her heart in an episode of ‘Dancing With the Stars’ back in 2017. “My parents saved me… 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,” Biles revealed. 

In another conversation, Biles also talked about a heartbreaking childhood memory before being sent to foster care. “I just remember, like, us as kids being so hungry and then I just remember this cat that would get fed and not like, quite us,” she said according to PEOPLE. But just the indomitable spirit she is, the Olympic gold medalist found a silver lining during the difficult situation. “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.”

And well, Ronald and Nellie Biles did not just adopt Simone. They actually went out of their comfort zones to ensure that Simone Biles grew up to be a champion. 

Nellie Biles’ unimaginable sacrifice to save Simone Biles’ gymnastics career

Nellie Biles has been particularly fond of Simone since childhood. Watching her knack for tumbling, Simone’s mother registered her in a gymnasium. And soon, Simone was working wonders. Breaking the Karolyi Ranch-era stereotypes of what a ‘beautiful’ gymnast should look like, Simone was the rising star of her gymnasium. However, tragedy struck when, one day, her coach, Aimee Boorman, decided to leave. 

With the possibility of jeopardizing her career, Nellie Biles did the unthinkable. She sold off her entire chain of 14 hospitals to build an exclusive gym for her daughter. She also made sure that Aimee Boorman was going nowhere and stuck to Simone as her coach. Surely enough, the sacrifice paid off as the duo of Simone and Boorman stayed together for 11 years, taking Simone Biles to the pinnacle of gymnastics success. After coming out of Aimee Boorman’s coaching, Simone Biles currently trains under Laurent and Cecile Landi, with Gregory Milan as her special choreographer for Paris. 

Coming back to Nellie Biles, ever since Simone’s first competition, she has never missed braiding her daughter’s hair before a tournament. In the Netflix documentary ‘Simone Biles Rising’, Nellie Biles stated that it was her way of connecting with Simone and telling her that she was there for her. However, there was one occasion when Nellie Biles could not tie Simone’s hair: the Tokyo Olympics. 

Due to the COVID-19-related travel restrictions, the mother had to hug her daughter at the terminal of the airport before she left for Tokyo. And it was at this Olympics that Simone Biles’ dreaded ‘twisties’ came to the forefront. When a sobbing Biles called her mother to convey her decision to pull out of Tokyo, Nellie Biles comforted her and supported Simone in her decision to withdraw. 

Cut to Paris: Nellie Biles was again cheering for her daughter, sitting in the stands. And quite expectedly, normalcy returned as Simone Biles emerged at the top once again, basking in the shining lights of Olympic glory and etching her name in the Hall of the Immortals.