Simone Biles ‘Broke Down’ After Husband Jonathan Owens’ Controversial Interview
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Simone Biles is opening up about that viral interview with her husband, Jonathan Owens. ICYMI, last year during an interview on The Pivot podcast, NFL player Jonathan said he was “the catch” in his relationship with the Olympic gymnast, causing a ton of backlash online.
Simone, 27, said she found the fervor funny at first, but then thought it went too far. “One night, I broke down, and I'm like, 'Why are you guys talking about my husband like this?'” Simone shared in an April 16 episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast. "Talk about me all you want, but don't come for my family."
Jonathan and Simone have been together for a while and are truly adorable, despite the footballer’s podcast fumbles. Here’s everything to know about Simone’s husband Jonathan.
He’s a safety for the Chicago Bears.
No surprise here...Simone’s man is an athlete! Jonathan, 28, started playing football during high school in Missouri, through college at Missouri Western State University, and now plays professionally in the NFL.
Jonathan started his NFL career in 2018 with the Cardinals before joining the Houston Texans practice squad in 2019. He then officially signed with the Texans the following year. A few years later, he became a free agent and signed with the Packers in May 2023, according to his official player bio. He signed a two-year contract with the Chicago Bears in March 2024.
They first began dating in 2020.
Yes, Simone and Jonathan are a quarantine couple. The pair met in March 2020 via the dating app Raya, just before pandemic lockdowns began. But it was Simone who slid into Jonathan's DMs, not the other way around.
"I saw him and I was like, 'Oh, he's pretty cute,' so I said hi...and then I saw that he was in the Houston area, so we started chatting a little bit, and then we went to hang out a week or two later," she told the Wall Street Journal in 2021.
And, even though Simone is the most famous gymnast in the world, he wasn't aware of her greatness just yet. "I didn’t know who she was," he told Texas Monthly that same year. "I just hadn’t heard of her, and when I told her that, that’s one of the things she liked."
The timing worked out perfectly for the couple—the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Jonathan’s NFL training, suddenly freeing up their schedules, per the Monthly.
"We ended up hanging out right before the pandemic," he said. "It was one of the few times in her life where everything was just shut off and she couldn’t do anything. So we used it to get to know each other—really get to know each other. It created our bond and made it stronger. Now I’m so thankful." Awww.
They got engaged in 2022 and tied the knot the next year.
Jonathan popped the question in February 2022, with Simone sharing the exciting news via Instagram. “THE EASIEST YES,” Simone captioned her engagement photos. “I can’t wait to spend forever & ever with you, you’re everything I dreamed of and more! let’s get married FIANCÉ 💍🥺🥲🤎”
The couple got married in two 2023 ceremonies—first in an April courthouse wedding, then again in a larger ceremony in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The 140-guest event featured gold and white decorations, and Simone rocked four different dresses during the celebration, per People.
At the time, Simone explained to her followers why they got married in the United States before heading to Mexico for their ceremony.
"We had to get married 'legally' here in the U.S. since our wedding will be a destination wedding," she said on IG, per People.
They support each other’s athletic careers.
Simone and Jonathan may have packed sports schedules, but they always make time to cheer each other on.
“He’s a real man. I just, I love him," Simone told host Hoda Kotb on the TODAY show in January 2021. "We have a great time together. Our personalities match right up. We have the same sense of humor. And he’s just great. He’s an athlete, too, so we really understand each other, and I think that’s why our relationship has been seamless."
Simone is frequently rooting her man on in the stands, attending tons of his Packers games last year.
The same goes for Jonathan. He watched Simone compete in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 via livestream, since COVID regulations prohibited him from being there IRL. Plus, he joined Simone at the White House when she accepted The Presidential Medal of Freedom in July 2022.
"Words can’t explain how proud i am of you, this has been such a surreal experience to watch you receive your Presidential Medal of Freedom, and be the youngest to ever receive one at that!" he wrote on Instagram at the time. "You motivate me more everyday to be the best version of myself. Such a inspiration, i love you so much babe ❤️."
Simone has defended him after his controversial comments about their relationship.
In December 2023, Jonathan found himself in hot water after making some spicy comments about his relationship on The Pivot podcast. After sharing that he didn't know who Simone was when she slid into his DMs, Jonathan said he believes he's the "catch" in their relationship.
"I always say that the men are the catch," he said, adding that he "was fighting" against his natural feeling of being "afraid to commit."
At the time, Jonathan said he was "unbothered" by the backlash, posting the comment alongside a sweet wedding pic of him and Simone.
And, in an April 16 episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, Simone said her husband’s comments about her were taken out of context and overanalyzed. “He never said I wasn't a catch," she said. "He said he was a catch because he is. I've never met a man like him. A lot of people that meet him are like, 'Oh my gosh. I want a man like that, like Jonathan,'” Simone told host Alex Cooper.
Initially, she found the comments funny. "I thought it was hilarious what people were saying divorce him, divorce him. All of this crazy stuff," she said. "And, like, he doesn't even like to say divorce. So I thought it was hilarious at first, and then they hurt my feelings."
Eventually, the haters got to her. "One night, I broke down, and I'm like, 'Why are you guys talking about my husband like this?' That really hurt that they were talking about my husband like that. Because for me, it's like talk about me all you want, but don't come for my family," she said.
Simone called her husband the "sweetest," adding that she's "never met a man like him. He still opens my doors."
You Might Also Like
