Simone Biles: A timeline of key moments in the life of the gymnastics great, from the medals to the marriage and more

1997 - Simone Biles was born

It all begins! Simone Arianne Biles was born on 14 March 1997 in Columbus, Ohio.

2003 - Biles begins gymnastics

Simone Biles first began gymnastics at the age of 6 after being spotted by coach Aimee Boorman and her mom during a pre-school field trip to the gym where Boorman was coaching.

2011 - Biles makes her elite gymnastics debut

In 2011, Biles got her career in elite gymnastics underway, although failed to make the U.S. junior national team after finishing 14th in the all-around at the U.S. Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota.

2012 - Biles added to the U.S. junior national team

Biles' first domestic wins came in 2012, when she captured the junior all-around crowns at both the American and U.S. Classic competitions, catching the eye of many in the sport for her powerful tumbling and performance on vault, where her Yurchenko two-and-a-half dazzled. She finished third in the all-around as a junior at the U.S. Championships and is named the U.S. national team for the first time.

2013 - Biles wins first world title

At her first World Championships, Biles captured four medals including all-around and floor exercise gold. She was the silver medalist on vault and bronze on balance beam.

2014 - Biles defends world all-around title

In 2014, Biles helped the U.S. to the world team title and became the first American to defend a world all-around title since Shannon Miller won back-to-back global titles in 1993 and 1994. Biles also became the beam and floor world champion, in addition to taking a bronze medal on vault.

2015 - Biles becomes first woman to win three-straight world all-around titles

In August 2015, Biles won her third-straight U.S. title - a feat only previously accomplished by Kim Zmeskal when she won three-straight from 1990-92. At the World Championships, Biles made more history by becoming the first woman to win three consecutive world titles in the all-around. She also defended her titles in the team, balance beam, and floor exercise finals. She was again the bronze medallist on vault.

2016 - Biles dominates Rio Olympics

At the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, Biles won four gold medals: team, all-around, vault, and floor exercise. She also captured a balance beam bronze medal. Following the Games, Biles participated in a U.S. tour organised by USA Gymnastics before enjoying a year long hiatus from competition.

2017 - Biles travels!

Making up for lost time, Biles caught up on some R&R in 2017, traveling the world and making sponsor appearances. She resumed training in the late summer with new coaches Laurent and Cecile Landi.

2018 - Biles returns to competition in Doha

In January 2018, Biles came forward to say that she, too, was a victim of USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar, who was, months later, convicted of assulting hundreds of athletes under his care.

Biles returned to competition at the 2018 U.S. Classic in Columbus, Ohio, winning the all-around, beam, and floor titles. The following month, she won a fifth U.S. title.

At the World Championships in Doha, Biles competed despite a kidney stone. In her most successful worlds to date, she won team, all-around, vault, and floor gold medals, a silver on the uneven bars, and a bronze on the beam.

2019 - Biles becomes most medalled gymnast at Worlds

After picking up a sixth U.S. all-around title, Biles travelled to the World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. There, she won five gold medals in the team, all-around, vault, balance beam, and floor exercise finals.

Those medals propelled her to several history making marks including becoming the most medalled gymnast ever at the World Championships (passing Belarus' Vitaly Scherbo, who held the record with 24) with 25 medals. She also became the first woman to win five world all-around titles.

The 2019 season also saw Biles debut two historic moves: the triple-twisting, double back on floor exericse and the double-twisting, double back dismount off the balance beam. Both elements became named in her honour in the gymnastics Code of Points.

2020 - Biles meets Jonathan Owens

Just before the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world, Biles met and began dating NFL player Jonathan Owens.

She spent the year training at her Houston gym, as remaining focused on the Tokyo 2020 Games set to be held in July 2021.

2021 - Biles sparks global conversation about mental health

Returning to competition at the 2021 U.S. Classic, Biles debuted her Yurchenko double back vault, the most difficult vault ever performed by a female gymnast. At the U.S. Championships, she became the first American woman to capture seven national all-around titles, confirming her status as the Greatest Of All Time (GOAT).

At the Tokyo 2020 Games in July 2021, Biles won team silver and balance beam bronze. But Biles is most remembered at those Games for starting a worldwide conversation after withdrawing from several finals to prioritise her mental health.

Following the Games, Biles traveled around the U.S. in her own 30-city tour: the Gold Over America Tour.

2022 - Biles announces engagement

On 14 February 2022, Biles announced that Owens had proposed to her, and she said "The easiest yes" in return.

Biles said publicly that she will be at the Paris 2024 Olympics in some capacity - either as competitor or spectator.

2023 - Biles weds Owens

On 21 April 2023, Biles weds Owens in a courthouse ceremony in Houston, Texas, following their 14-month engagement. The couple also have a destination wedding in the weeks that follow.