The fans of Olympic gymnast Simone Biles might have seen her parents supporting her as she became an all-time great in the world of athletics, but what many did not know was the fact that her pa
In a 2016 interview, Simone’s biological mother, Shanon Biles, admitted that she had given her up, along with her three siblings, for adoption in 2000, when Simone was two years old, after struggling to put a lid on her drug and alcohol addiction. In fact, Simone’s biological father, Kelvin Clemons, was never a part of the world champion’s life.
rents were actually her grandparents, who adopted her at the age of six.
Simone Biles in the foster care system
Shanon Biles has spoken about what it meant to give up her children. “When we signed the [adoption] papers, it was like my dad flipped a switch on me,” Shanon, who is from Ohio, told the outlet. “No communication, don’t call, and don’t visit. That’s how it was at the beginning. It took me six years before I saw my children again. I was respecting my dad to let the kids transition, he felt that was the best thing for them. It was hard to give up my kids, but I had to do what I had to, I wasn’t able to care for them. I was still using, and he didn’t want me coming in and out of their lives when I wasn’t right.”Last week, in an interview with USA Today, Simone opened up about what it was like being in the foster care system, where she snuck out of her bedroom at night to check on her brother sleeping in a separate room because she feared that if she didn’t, she’d wake up in the morning to find him moved to another foster home. “I know exactly how it is, and I know exactly how you feel being a foster kid. I can be a voice for them. I can help them, and I can tell them that they’re not alone and that it’s going to be OK. That you can also still be great in the world. Being in foster care isn’t going to be your only title,” the four-time Olympic gold medalist said.
Every time Simone and her siblings were assigned to a new foster home, the officials would let her grandparents know. When she turned six, Simone’s grandfather, Ronald Biles, and his wife, Nellie, adopted her and her younger sister, Adria. “We’re family,” Ron recalled saying. In fact, it was him who had suggested to Shanon that if she ever had a daughter, she should name her Simone. “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,” Nellie said. “I really think it’s important that that’s the first thing that should be done with any child that is displaced, is to find a permanent home.” The two oldest siblings, Ashley and Tevin, were adopted by Ron Biles’ sister in Ohio.
