Riley Gaines Left Heartbroken for Gymnast Sister After Disappointment Over Simone Biles’ Apology

It’s been over 24 hours since Simone Biles publicly issued an apology to Riley Gaines for her June 6 tweet. In her message, Simone wrote, “I wanted to follow up from my last tweets. I’ve always believed competitive equity & inclusivity are both essential in sport. The current system doesn’t adequately balance these important principles, which often leads to frustration and heated exchanges, and it didn’t help for me to get personal with Riley, which I apologize for.” Riley, a former NCAA swimmer, accepted the apology—but not without reservations. She described it as ‘half-hearted’ and also took issue with several other aspects of Simone’s statement.

During her appearance on The Will Cain Show, Riley Gaines expressed concerns about Simone Biles’ apology, stating, “I have a problem with some of the things she [Simone] said, including the words and phrases, competitive equity, and inclusivity. Look, that is not what competition is about.” This controversy stemmed from Champlin Park Rebels’ commanding 6-0 win over Bloomington Jefferson in the Girls 4A Minnesota State Softball Championship on June 6.

Following the game, Riley reshared a post about the victory with the caption: “Comments off lol…” —a move that quickly sparked backlash. However, Simone Biles responded by reposting Riley’s tweet, tagging her and labeling her as “sick” and a “straight up sore loser.” So, while Gaines may have accepted Simone’s apology, she hasn’t let go of the sting from that sharp public criticism—and, as she suggests, she has some personal reasons for holding on to it.

Speaking with Stephen A. Smith on his talk show on June 11, Riley Gaines opened up about what truly affected her. “I was heartbroken,” she shared. However, she clarified that it wasn’t the personal insults—being called a b—-, disgusting, or truly sick—that upset her. “I’ll tell you what, I wasn’t heartbroken because of the personal attacks, because of her calling me a bully or saying that I’m disgusting or truly sick or whatever she said. It wasn’t that hurt my feelings because I’m a very secure person. I’m secure with myself. I’m secure with the side of history that I’m on. Very happily married for three-plus years,” So what really hurt her, she implied, ran deeper than any name-calling.

“What did bother me is knowing the platform,” Riley Gaines explained, “that she has and how she was so quick in such a venomous way to sell out young girls like my little sister. My little sister is 16 years old. She’s an elite-level gymnast.” The 25-year-old pointed out that her 16-year-old sister, Neely Gaines, is an elite-level gymnast, and Simone’s stance on the issue raised serious concerns for her.

In Riley’s view, Biles’ position could have direct consequences on athletes like her sibling. Coming from a deeply athletic family herself, Riley emphasized that her youngest sister is the most talented among them and is destined for great things in college and beyond. That, she said, is what broke her heart.

“My youngest sister is the best athlete out of all of us. She will go on to do incredible things, whatever she does in college and beyond. That’s why my heart broke in that moment. I’m sure you’ll continue to read the next tweet that Simone put out, which we can discuss, but in that moment, I was so just disappointed and disheartened to know a woman who has done so much for the sport was so quick to pull up the ladder behind her, is how I would describe it,” Riley said, expressing disappointment in Simone’s reaction. She hinted that the discussion might continue, referencing another tweet from Biles still to be addressed. Clearly, the tension between the two isn’t resolved just yet.