Simone Biles family life explained from adoptive parents to biological mum and siblings

18 July 2024, 17:04 | Updated: 1 August 2024, 12:33

By Alice Dear

Is Simone Biles adopted? Who are her grandparents? Who is her biological mum and does she have any siblings?

Simone Biles, 29, is currently planning her Olympics comeback in Paris for 2024 as well as starring in a new Netflix documentary called Simone Biles Rising.

In the documentary, Simone - who is the winner of 37 Olympic and World Championship medals - can be seen with her adoptive parents, Ronald and Nellie Biles, who took her and her sister Adria out of foster care when she was six-years-old.

Interestingly, the American-Belizean gymnast's adoptive dad is her biologically grandfather, with him and his wife stepping in to raise her after he biological mother was unable to.

• Listen on Global Player, the official Heart App: The Sports Agents with Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman

Here's a look inside Simone Biles' complex family life, from her biological mum and dad to her adoptive parents and siblings.

Is Simone Biles adopted?

Yes, Simone Biles was adopted when she was six-years-old alongside her sister Adria. This came after the pair were put into foster care after her mother became unable to care for them.

The Olympian was adopted by her grandfather and his wife who raised her and Adria as their own, giving them the freedom to call them mum and dad.

• READ MORE: When is Simone Biles competing again? A break down of her Olympic schedule
• READ MORE: Who is Simone Biles's husband Jonathan Owens? Age, height, net worth and career revealed

Who are Simone Biles' parents?

Simone Biles parents are Ronald and Nellie Biles. The pair married in 1977 and later adopted Simone and Adria who were, at the time, in foster care.

Ronald and Nellie are Simone's biological grandfather and grandmother, who stepped in to take care of the children after they spent three years in foster care.

Simone has previously spoken about how excited she used to be when he grandfather would visit them while in foster care, saying: "“Whenever we had visits with my grandpa, I was so excited. That was the person I always wanted to see walk into the foster home.”

After the couple brought Simone and her sister home, they gave the pair the opinion to start calling them 'mum' and 'dad'. The gymnastic star revealed during Dancing With The Stars that they had said: “OK, you know how you called us Grandma and Grandpa? You can call us Mom and Dad now, if you want to."

Who are Simone Biles' biological parents?

Simone Biles' mother is the biological daughter of her adopted parents, Ronald and Nellie Biles.

Their daughter, Shanon, reportedly struggled with drug and alcohol addiction while raising Simone, Adria and their two other siblings and was in-and-out of prison, meaning she could not care for them.

The four children were separated from their biological mother and placed into foster care before being adopted by Ronald and Nellie.

Reflecting on this, Simone has previously said: "Being separated from my biological mom, being placed in foster care before I officially got adopted by my grandparents, it just set me up for a better route at life."

She added in 2021's Simone VS Herself: "I don’t remember a lot about foster care, but I definitely knew that we had been taken from our biological mom and then you just think you’re going to go back to her."

While there have been reports of Shanon and her daughter reconnecting in the past, the current status of their relationship is unknown, with the athlete still referring to Ronald and Nellie as he mum and dad.

There is almost no information out there about Simone Biles' biological father.

Does Simone Biles have siblings?

Yes, Simone Biles has three siblings. All four of the children were put into foster care at a young age, but managed to be adopted together.

Simone has two sisters; Adria and Ashley, and one brother; Tevin. While Simone and Adria were adopted together by Ronald and Nellie Biles, Ashley and Tevin were adopted by Ronald's sister, Harriet, and raised in Ohio.

Speaking of the foster system, she said: “We were very fortunate that we actually got to stay with our siblings because a lot of the time you either get regrouped from home to home to home or you and your siblings get split up."