Simone Biles's Boyfriend Jonathan Owens: "You Inspire Me More and More Every Day"

Simone Biles's Boyfriend Jonathan Owens: "You Inspire Me More and More Every Day"
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Simone Biles's boyfriend, NFL football player Jonathan Owens, is standing by her side during the Tokyo Olympics. Biles removed herself from the team final, citing mental health concerns. The following day, she withdrew from the Thursday's individual all-around competition, and will not defend her gold medals.

The U.S. women's gymnastics team walked away with silver. On Instagram, Biles posted a photo with her teammates Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Grace McCallum. Biles wrote, "I’ll forever be inspired by your determination to not give up and to fight through adversity...They stepped up when I couldn’t. Thanks for being there for me and having my back!" Owens commented on the post, "I'm so proud of y'all."

On July 29, Owens wrote a full tribute post on Instagram dedicated to his girlfriend, featuring a carousel of photos from their time together. "Imma ride with you through whatever baby... Your strength and courage is unmatched and you inspire me more and more everyday [sic]," he wrote.

The post arrived around the same time Biles defended her decision to withdraw from the Olympics on her Instagram story. "You always gone be my champ baby and don’t you ever forget that," he said. Owens, who celebrated his 26th birthday while Biles was away, expressed his love and excitement to see her "beautiful smile" again. "You know I’m always here for you baby," he wrote.

The couple first went Instagram official in August 2020, around when the Tokyo Olympics were supposed to be before the year-long delay. Biles shared two snuggly selfies of the couple. "It's just us," she captioned the photos, sharing a bonus pic of the pair on her Instagram Story (because true love deserves the story and the feed).

Biles split from her former boyfriend of nearly three years, Stacey Ervin Jr., in March 2020. Biles confirmed the breakup in her July Vogue cover story, saying, "It’s hard being young and having that long of a relationship and then ending it. But it was for the best."

Here's what we know about Simone Biles's boyfriend—aside from the fact that they look adorable together, and he's got her back.

Owens is a 26-year-old NFL football player.

He's currently a safety for the Houston Texans, and a former player for the Arizona Cardinals. Prior to joining the NFL, Owens played college football at Missouri Western State, working as a server at Red Lobster to support himself.

After a knee injury kept him off the field during his rookie season with the Cardinals, they released him in August 2019. Owens, who stands at a height of 5'11", was signed to the Texans' practice squad a month later, and he inked a reserve/future contract with the team in January 2020.

They met on a dating app.

Owens and Biles found love in a hopeless place—a.k.a. amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Both living in Texas for work, Biles and Owen connected on the celebrity dating app Raya right before quarantine protocols in March 2020, per an interview with Glamour.

Biles made the first move. "He would say I slid into his DMs," Biles told The Wall Street Journal. "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." Things moved quickly: Biles's sister, Adria, invited Owens on a family trip. Soon, he was attending the family's weekly Sunday dinners.

Owens said the quarantine period actually strengthened their connection. "We ended up hanging out right before the pandemic. It was one of the few times in her life where everything was just shut off and she couldn’t do anything," Owens told Texas Monthly. "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."

Owens didn't know who Biles was at first.

Biles is the greatest gymnast of all time. She won four gold medals during the Rio Olympics, and is now the most decorated gymnast in history.

And—wait for it—Owens had never heard of her. "I didn’t know who she was," Owens told Texas Monthly in June 2021. "I just hadn’t heard of her, and when I told her that, that’s one of the things she liked."

Owens is astonished by her gymnastics prowess. "The coolest thing for me is that I get to witness someone who is literally in the pinnacle of their sport. It’s motivating to see that and the impact that she has on people. We were walking past this group of girls, and they were shaking, ‘Oh my god, it’s Simone!’ This is when I kind of knew. Like, okay, yeah, she’s the real deal," he said.

Owens calls them a "match made in heaven."

If you're wondering whether Owens is a romantic, wonder no more. Speaking to Texas Monthly, Owens gushed about their connection. “This was a match made in heaven. There’s no better person for me. She loves me, she’s so affectionate. I just love that. And it’s just intoxicating seeing how much work she puts into everything," he said.

Biles is equally enthusiastic about their relationship. She talked Owens up on the TODAY show. "He’s a real man. I just, I love him. We have a great time together," she told TODAY's co-anchor Hoda Kotb. "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."

His zodiac sign is Cancer.

Owens celebrated his 26th birthday on July 22, 2021. While in Japan for the Olympics, Biles posted a birthday message for her boyfriend.

"I love you so much. Can’t wait to celebrate you when I get home! thanks for keeping me sane during the craziest times...not sure how I got so lucky & what I’d do without you!" Biles said. She's Pisces, by the way, for all you zodiac compatibility fans out there.

Biles has been liking his Instas since November 2019.

Elle points out that Owens first hearted a post of Owens on the field at a football game in November 2019, extolling the virtues of trusting in God. According to Elle, her second like—of a shirtless photo of Owens on a Miami hotel deck—came right around the time of her breakup with Ervin Jr.

While Owens doesn't post to his feed very often, Biles has been double-tapping on every one of his photos since.

He's a dog lover, like his girlfriend.

Owens has an English bulldog named Zeus. He's even got his own Instagram account—just like Biles's French bulldogs, Lilo and Rambo—and I think we can all agree that Zeus looks like a VERY GOOD BOY. Here's Zeus just lounging on the patio, showing off his bottom teeth.

Now, Owens and Biles's dogs are bonded, just like their owners. "I’ll show up at her house and her dogs will peek around her looking for my dog,” Owens told Texas Monthly. "They’ve become best friends."

Biles posted a photo of her with Zeus. They're one big happy family.

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