Simone Biles' Grandparents' Feud With Biological Mother Exposed After Rio Olympics Win

Simone Biles is at the height of her career and won her first Olympic gold medal in Rio on Tuesday. However, despite her success, the 19-year-old was put in the middle of a public family spat between her biological mother and her grandfather.

According to the New York Daily News, Biles' grandparents are the ones who provided her and her sister with a stable life growing up after the children were put into foster care. The gymnast’s birth mother, Shanon Biles, signed away her parental rights during her struggle with substance abuse.

Biles was around two years old when her grandparents took her and sister Adria into their care. Now that the athlete is in the spotlight, her biological mother wants to set the record straight and let the world know that she is no longer struggling with addiction.

Shanon Biles claims that she has been sober for nine years and feels that her father’s comments about her past during a recent interview were uncalled for. According to the New York Daily News, Ron Biles told NBC that when Simone was younger, he and his wife, Nellie became the support system that the athlete needed. He revealed that as Shanon Biles struggled with substance abuse, he and his wife gave the athlete love and encouragement.

Meanwhile, Shanon Biles feels as if her father should have never mentioned her past struggles. She told TMZ Sports, “Life goes on, and that’s my past, and that’s what it should be left at, the past.” She went on to reveal that she feels like her father didn’t have to be so harsh in his comments and that he should have been more considerate seeing as she is his first born.

Despite the family feud, Shanon Biles says that she loves her daughter and is extremely proud of her. She went on to reveal that she actually speaks with Simone “maybe every three months” and that they vacation together on occasion.