Simone Biles

 

Jonathan Owens called himself 'the catch' in his relationship with Simone Biles. Here's a timeline of their 3-year relationship.

• Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens have been dating since March 2020, right before the pandemic.

• The athletes first connected on social media, with Biles sliding into Owens' DMs.

• They got married in April 2023 in a small ceremony, before saying their vows again in Cabo in May.

Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles and NFL player Jonathan Owens are in the headlines after comments Owens made about the start of their relationship on an episode of "The Pivot" podcast.

The Green Bay Packers player said he didn't know who Biles was when they matched on the dating app Raya in 2020, and agreed with the host that he was "the catch" in their relationship.

Although Owens is catching some flak, Biles is supporting her husband. She posted photos from their April 2023 wedding on Instagram and commented on Owens' post that their relationship is "for life."

Here's a closer look at their relationship over the past three years, from their first post on Instagram to now.

March 2020: They connect via social media and start hanging out

According to a Texas Monthly profile in June 2021 of Owens, the two met right before COVID-19 shut down their sports.

"We ended up hanging out right before the pandemic," Owens 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."

Biles told  The Wall Street Journal in July 2021 that the two met on Instagram, though later Owens claimed the two met on Raya, a dating app.

"He would say I slid into his DMs," she said. "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."

Owens added in the Texas Monthly profile that he'd noted Biles' 4 million — at the time — Instagram followers.

A few weeks later, according to Biles, her younger sister, Adria, saw they were talking on FaceTime, and stole her sister's phone to ask if Owens was coming to a family trip to their lake house. He accepted the invite and even brought his bulldog, Zeus.

August 2020: Biles debuts Owens on her Instagram

Biles posted a sweet photo of the pair for the first time on August 2. She captioned it "it's just us" with a brown heart.

A few weeks later, she joked about her gymnastics prowess with a photo of the two captioned "the only time I fall is when he's there to catch me."

According to The Wall Street Journal, Owens also began attending Biles family dinners every Sunday around this time.

September 2020: Owens posts about their relationship for the first time

About a month later, on September 8, Owens posted about Biles on Instagram for the first time — a mirror selfie captioned, "Now you rockin with a real one."

December 2020: Biles spends Christmas with Owens' family and watches Owens play

Owens shared a series of photos with Biles and his family in matching pajamas, captioned, "Always good to spend Christmas with the fam ❤️ Happy holidays to everyone."

Biles posted her own photo with Owens with the caption, "if santa ask, the elves did it! merry christmas."

Two days later, Biles posted about watching Owens play with the Texans, before the couple celebrated the new year together.

February 2021: They celebrate Valentine's Day together with an elaborate setup

Biles and Owens both shared Instagram posts of their ornate decorations, complete with a giant "LOVE" sign, balloons, and rose petals.

March 2021: They travel to Belize to celebrate their anniversary and Biles' birthday

Biles, who holds dual citizenship in Belize, and Owens both posted about their vacation to the country, including this photo, captioned, "i love you more than i love Belize and thats a lot."

Owens posted later in the month for Biles' 24th birthday, complete with a Jay-Z quote.

The following month, the couple took another trip, this time to Florida.

June 2021: Owens watches Biles compete for the first time at the US Gymnastics Championships

Biles won her seventh national all-around title.

Owens told Texas Monthly that watching her compete in person was "unbelievable."

He added, "It's so amazing to watch. When I saw her for the first time, I realized that the TV really doesn't do it justice. When she goes out there and does it, it looks so effortless."

June 2021: Owens speaks about their relationship for the first time and says he 'didn't know who' Biles was when she reached out

During Owens' Texas Monthly interview, Owens added he didn't know who Biles was at first.

"I just hadn't heard of her, and when I told her that, that's one of the things she liked," he said.

He gushed about how their bulldogs get along, how amazing it was to see her compete, and why they get along so well.

"This was a match made in heaven," Owens said. "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."

Owens also spoke about how excited he was for Biles to compete in the Tokyo Olympics, which started in July 2021.

"It's gonna be amazing. I'll be nervous. I'll be like, 'Oh my God, oh my God,'" he said.

July 2021: After Biles experiences the 'twisties' and withdraws from 2 Olympic events, Owens shares his love on Instagram

"Imma ride with you through whatever baby," Owens wrote alongside a carousel of photos of the two of them. "Your strength and courage is unmatched and you inspire me more and more everyday SB. You always gone be my champ baby and don't you ever forget that, i love you so much and i can't wait till you come home and i get to see that beautiful smile again. You know I'm always here for you baby," he said.

Biles commented "I love you so much" with a heart and a fingers crossed emoji.

December 2021: Biles supports her boyfriend at his first NFL start

 

Biles was there to cheer on Owens during his first NFL start on December 12.

"GAME DAY!!!!" she wrote in an Instagram post of the couple. "#36 on the field #1 in my heart."

Then, on December 26, during a game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Owens made a key interception against quarterback Justin Herbert then added a fumble recovery. Biles was watching from the stands.

 

"I'm so proud of you, watching you get your first NFL interception & fumble recovery was a dream!" she wrote on Instagram. "all the hard work is paying off & this is just the beginning!"

February 2022: The couple reveals they're engaged

 

On Instagram on February 15, Biles shared a series on photos showing the proposal and her oval-cut diamond ring.

"THE EASIEST YES," Biles captioned the photos. "I can't wait to spend forever & ever with you, you're everything I dreamed of and more! let's get married FIANCÉ."

Owens, who also shared the photos to Instagram, commented on Biles' post, saying, "Ready for forever with you."

February 2023: Biles has a bachelorette party in Belize, while Owens celebrates in Punta Cana

Simone Biles' Husband Jonathan Owens 'Not Bothered' amid Backlash for Claim He's the 'Catch' in Their Marriage

"I always say that the men are the catch," Owens said in his interview with 'The Pivot' podcast, noting that he was "afraid to commit" but changed his tune

The Green Bay Packers safety, 28, appeared on the latest episode of The Pivot podcast alongside his wife — who recently became the  most decorated gymnast of all time — and recounted the story of how they met, including the fact that she reached out first.

Asked by co-host Channing Crowder, "How in the hell did you pull Simone Biles?", Owens admitted he "didn't know who she was" back in 2020 when they first connected, after matching on the Raya dating app.

"I'm like, 'Lemme see who this is.' I never really paid attention to gymnastics, so it piqued my curiosity," said the NFL player.

He soon learned that Biles, 26, was more notable than he'd realized. "The first thing that I saw was that she just had a bunch of [Instagram] followers. So in my mind I'm like, 'Okay, she's gotta be good,' " Owens said on the podcast.

Explaining how it was possible that he didn't know who Biles was at first considering her notoriety, Owens said, "When she won the Olympics, I was in college and we didn't have NBC, we didn't have Olympics channels, and we were in [training] camp [in] late July, early August."

"So I'm not paying attention. I never would've had a moment where I would've watched [her compete]," he added.

She messaged him first, which led to them "texting back and forth" before connecting in person for the first time three days later, according to Owens.

"We couldn't do much, because COVID happened and everything was shut down," said the football player, who was playing for the Houston Texans at the time. "So she came down to Houston. She lived in the suburbs, so she had to drive about 45 minutes. Then the rest is history."

The couple tied the knot on April 22, 2023, at the Harris County Courthouse in Houston. A few weeks later, they hosted a second wedding celebration in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Asked whether he believes he is the "catch" in his relationship with Biles, Owens said, "I always say that the men are the catch," and that he "was fighting" against his natural feeling of being "afraid to commit" at that point in his life.

"I'm like, 'It's kinda early.' But you know, it happens when you least expect it. When we hung out, we just hit it off instantly. Laughed the whole night," he said.

He was also drawn to Biles' answer about whom she considers her biggest competition (spoiler: herself), and said he really realized her impact when they were out one Sunday at a popular cookie spot.

"It was all these moms and they're there with their kids and we walked past and everybody stopped and just [stared]. Kids were just shaking, like, 'Oh, my God,' " Owens recalled.

Asked whether he believes he is the "catch" in his relationship with Biles, Owens said, "I always say that the men are the catch," and that he "was fighting" against his natural feeling of being "afraid to commit" at that point in his life.

"I'm like, 'It's kinda early.' But you know, it happens when you least expect it. When we hung out, we just hit it off instantly. Laughed the whole night," he said.

He was also drawn to Biles' answer about whom she considers her biggest competition (spoiler: herself), and said he really realized her impact when they were out one Sunday at a popular cookie spot.

"It was all these moms and they're there with their kids and we walked past and everybody stopped and just [stared]. Kids were just shaking, like, 'Oh, my God,' " Owens recalled.

Following the podcast episode's premiere, Owens seemingly responded to criticism over his comments in a post on Instagram Thursday evening.

Sharing photos of himself and his wife loved up on their wedding day and in a couple of more casual shots, he wrote, "Unbothered 😂❤️ Just know we locked in over here 🤞🏽."

Aside from sharing his post to her own Instagram Story, Biles also left a comment of support on her husband's grid post.

"🤞🏾💋 for life," she wrote.