What a difference a docuseries makes! Simone Biles, whose Netflix docuseries, Simone Biles Rising, Part 2 premieres on Friday, Oct. 25, gets to set the record straight about her marriage to Jonathan Owens. The Chicago Bears safety caught some internet heat last year for his controversial comments on The Pivot podcast in December 2023.
The Olympic gymnast tried to tell fans that they misinterpreted their marriage after Owens claimed he was “the catch” in their marriage and that he had no idea who she was until they met during the COVID-era lockdown from a dating app. While it seems hard to fathom that a fellow athlete didn’t know who the GOAT (Greatest of all time) was, he rationalized it during the interview.
“When she won the Olympics [in Rio], I was in college, and we didn’t have NBC, we didn’t have Olympics channels, and we were in [training] camp in late July, early August,” he said. “So, I’m not paying attention. I never had a moment where I would have watched [her perform].” Biles’ loyal fans were not happy that he seemingly dismissed the talented athlete’s accomplishments. Still, her Netflix series showed a very different side to their relationship – it was loving, loyal, and filled with support and respect.
Biles discussed how important Owens was to her during her successful run at the Paris Olympics this summer at a Q&A on Wednesday, Oct. 23 at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, attended by SheKnows. “The Bears let him miss a couple of days and it meant the world to me because these are memories we’ll cherish together,” she explained. “It just means everything to me that he could show up and support me because he also knows that he’s my comfort person.”
Owens was there in the stands in his custom Biles T-shirt with his wife’s face plastered across his chest. She even referenced a moment during the all-around competition when she was vying for gold and messed up during her uneven bars routine. She revealed, “I look to him even after I had one of the bar mistakes, I just looked at him and he’s like, ‘You’re fine, calm down.’ But then he was also like, ‘You need this. You need it to mess up because you need to lock in.’ ” It was his belief in her that helped her overcome a mistake and move on to her final two events to seal the gold medal.
Biles added, “So he just knows me so well, it was really nice having my family and even having [docuseries director] Katie [Walsh] and all of them on the floor, that gives me a sense of home and comfort.” The 27-year-old gymnast had all of the physical and mental skills she needed to achieve her goals, but Owens’ support took her to the final line. His podcast interview last year wasn’t his finest moment, but it was a lesson for everyone that we shouldn’t judge a person – or a marriage – on one moment in time. Biles knows that Owens is in her corner.