Simone Biles mother Nellie placed a bet with the gymnast to get a belly piercing. (Images by Getty)

“Outrageous fashion choice" - When Simone Biles opened up about her father's reaction to belly piercing

Modified Mar 05, 2025 19:30 GMT

Simone Biles once opened up about the bet she agreed with her mother Nellie and her father's reaction to get a belly piercing. Reflecting on the incident in her autobiography, Courage to Soar, published in November 2016, Biles shared a memory of her childhood when she and her younger sister, Adria, used to play with a toy that had fake make-up jewels.

Instead of putting the jewels on their forehead, the sisters would put them on their belly buttons. Biles' father, Ronald, disliked the fashion choice, calling it odd and questioning why anyone would want a belly piercing. However, Biles was determined to get her belly pierced and focused on convincing her mother, Nellie, who would laugh it off.

However, after persistent convincing attempts by then-eight-year-old Simone, Nellie set a condition, stating that if the gymnast won the World Championships that year, she could get her belly pierced.

"It all started when I was eight. Mom had given Adria and me a toy makeup kit with these colorful fake stick-on jewels called bindis. You were supposed to put them on your forehead or at the corners of your eyes, but Adria and I always stuck them on our belly buttons. No surprise, my dad thought this was an outrageous fashion choice. “Why would anyone want a belly piercing?” Simone Biles wrote.

"I focused all my persuasive powers on my mom. She’d just laugh and say, 'Well, I have to think about that.' But one day, just before I turned sixteen, she said, 'All right, Simone, if you win Worlds this year, you can get your belly pierced'," Simone wrote further.

Simone Biles won two gold medals at the 2013 World Artistics Championships, successfully winning the bet.

"I’ll take you there to pick out a dog myself" - When Simone Biles reflected on the bet she agreed with her father to pet a dog

Simone Biles of the United States during the Olympic Games in Paris, France. (Photo by Getty Images)

In her autobiography, Courage to Soar, Biles also opened up about the bet she agreed with her father, Ronald, for getting a dog. She shared how Ronald finally agreed to get her and her sister Adria a dog, but only after betting that she would qualify for the Western Gymnastics competition.

“'Okay, Simone,' he said finally. 'I’ll tell you what. You qualify for Westerns this year, and you’ll get your dog'. 'Are you serious?' I said, jumping out of my chair. I wasn’t sure I was hearing him right. 'You score high enough at regionals, 'he said, turning back to his paperwork, 'I’ll take you there to pick out a dog myself', ” Simone wrote.

Simone Biles further stated that the bet pushed her to perform well at the Championships, placing first on floor and second in all-around, and qualifying for the Westerns while having successfully won the bet.