Simone Biles Fact Checks ESPN After Error About Gold Medals

Simone Biles hit back at ESPN W after the network made an “awkward” error in a recent post.

In a since-deleted tweet on Monday, August 14, the official ESPN W account — which focuses on women’s sports — wrote, “Seven years ago today, Simone Biles won the women’s vault final in Rio. That night, Biles became the first U.S. female gymnast to win three gold medals at one Olympics.”

Shortly after the tweet, Biles, 26, stepped in to correct the mistake. “This is awkward … I won 4 ????,” she tweeted.

Following their blunder, ESPN W took down the post and reposted the article with the new addition. “Same page, ????,” the outlet replied.

Biles received all four of her gold medals — which include three individual gold medals and one as part of the United States team — at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Biles withdrew from the final individual all-around competition to preserve her mental and physical health before ultimately winning individual bronze on beam and team silver.

“Simone has been through so much, but her determination and sheer strength of character has been her greatest asset her whole life,” an insider revealed to Us Weekly in August 2021. “She definitely has [her parents] Ron and Nellie to thank for that; they encouraged and inspired her to follow her dreams and pursue a career in gymnastics from a very early age. They’re very much her champions and she looks at them as her rock, so it was definitely hard for her not to have them in Tokyo with her.”

In November 2021, Biles shared that she would only compete again if it didn’t negatively affect her mental health.

“I love the sport. I love the people that I work with. I love the girls that I trained with, but those organizations, it’s just like — ugh!” Biles told Us at the time. “It’s just like a huge dumpster fire that we’re trying to get rid of and that I’m trying to stay as far away from so that my mental health can be intact and if I do decide to train again that I have a clean slate.”

During her break from gymnastics, Biles and Jonathan Owens tied the knot in April after three years of dating. “I do,” Biles captioned wedding snaps via Instagram.

Three months after her wedding, the USA Gymnastics announced in July that Biles would be participating in the U.S. Classic that August.

“Sorry I’ve been a little MIA since the announcement,” Biles tweeted in July. “I’m overwhelmed with all of your messages, support & love! Excited to get back out on the competition floor! XOXO.”

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At the meet, Biles earned the gold medal after finishing in first place in vault, floor and balance beam events. “???? ???? ???? ???? ???? gold medals for WCC,” she gushed via her Instagram Story on August 6, referring to her and her World Champions Centre teammates’ placements.