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Chicago Bears safety Jonathan Owens and legendary gymnast Simone Biles have had a high-profile relationship for the past few years, culminating in their marriage in 2023. However, the marriage has resulted in some strange online discourse, which has caused Biles to speak out.
The six-time World all-around champion sounded off on her Instagram story Monday, via USA Today’s Charles Curtis.
“Y’all are blatantly being disrespectful to my relationship and my husband,” she said “So I’m gonna go ahead and say this one time. Respectfully, [expletive] off. And if you keep commenting or tweeting at me I’m going to block you. Simple as that.”
The angry tell-off stems from fans criticizing her playful response to Owens’ story about how their relationship started. When asked about how they met, Owens had claimed that Biles pursued him on a dating app, via Ryan Clark’s The Pivot podcast.
You know how it goes with us. I’m on my interview & of course @OfficialCrowder asked what we all skipped around…
“How’d you pull @simonebiles?”@jjowens_3 was a young bachelor in H-Town, new to dating apps, & he had a perfect match with some young lady named Simone. Jonathan… pic.twitter.com/UAmggMAvEb
— Ryan Clark (@Realrclark25) December 19, 2023
“It’s really how she pulled me, that’s the question,” Owens said. “I’ma tell you the story…I just got to Houston, I had probably been in Houston seven months. I was single at the time, so I’m just livin’, being myself. COVID has just hit, but I had just went to Arizona, and one of my boys said ‘aye man, you gotta check out this app…’ It was called Raya at the time, it was a dating app…”
From there, the new Chicago signee explained how he played it cool, as he didn’t even know who she was.
“I had been on the app for a couple days, and she (Simone) pops up,” he continued. “I’m like ‘let me see who this is.’ I had never really paid attention to gymnastics before…I swiped her, and it said we matched…I go do my workout, and I come back, and I had some likes on my Instagram…so I said ‘I’ma wait ’till I take a shower and everything.’ Then I come back to my phone, and she messages me on the app, like ‘hey.'”
The two eventually set up a date, and “the rest was history.” Biles said that Owens’ side of the story wasn’t accurate, but the two were having fun with the topic.
This story has still been getting a rise out of fans, even though it was told five months ago. Additionally, it brings up several macro-level societal questions. Why do fans harass public figures about their personal lives in the first place? Did Biles overreact, or was she in the right?
Unfortunately, this criticism probably won’t stop for as long as Owens is on the Bears
Professional athletes are constantly under the microscope, and social media enables unhinged fans to voice their opinions 24/7. While the origins of Biles and Owen’s relationship aren’t anyone’s business, fans will probably continue to talk about it for as long as he’s taking the field on Sundays. Once he retires, he’ll no longer be in the spotlight, and will finally be able to enjoy his marriage in peace.
Until then, Owens will have to tune out the noise as the Bears try to win their second Super Bowl in franchise history this upcoming season.
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