Simone Biles’ Biological Mom Says She Wants to Reunite With Her Daughter ‘Whenever She’s Ready’

Simone Biles’s biological mother, Shannon Biles , has been hoping for a reunion with her daughter.

“I want to let her know that I love her and I’m very proud of her,” Shannon, 52, said in response to a reporter from The Daily Mail who asked her if she had a way to get in touch with Simone, 27. “I’m just still waiting, you know? I would like to sit down and talk to [her] and answer any questions [she] may have.”

Shannon continued, “I would like to make amends with Simone personally – I'm just waiting for her and [her younger sister] Adria. I speak to Adria more than I speak to Simone. I would just ask her to forgive me. Can we move forward? Don't judge me on my past. Let's move forward. I'm waiting for the opportunity but I'm waiting on her to be able to come to me. Let's sit down. I just have to be patient.”

While the Ohio native does keep up with Simone’s accomplishments, Shannon revealed that she receives the information via her father, Ronald Biles , who officially adopted Simone in 2003.

“What I hear about Simone I hear through my dad. I speak to my dad all the time,” Shannon told the outlet. “We're good now. It was just his birthday, and I called to wish him [a] happy birthday. If I need to know anything I call my dad. I ask him about Simone, and he keeps me posted.”

Shannon also opened up about Simone and her siblings being adopted when the gold medalist was only 3 years old.

“It was hard to give up my kids, but I had to do what I had to do,” Shannon told the outlet in the interview published on Wednesday, August 14. “I wasn't able to care for them. I was still using and [my father] didn't want me coming in and out of their lives when I wasn't right.”

When Simone was born in 1997, Shannon struggled with addiction. Shannon’s substance abuse issues resulted in Simone and her siblings being placed in and out of foster care until Shannon’s father, Ronald, 75, and his second wife, Nellie , stepped in and took the children into their home in 2000. Three years later, Ronald and Nellie formally adopted Simone and Adria. Ronald’s sister, Harriet, adopted the Olympian’s two older siblings, Tevin and Ashley.

However, the relationship between Shannon and her dad was strained at first, which was something she struggled to deal with in the beginning.

“When we signed the [adoption] papers it was like my dad flipped a switch on me – no communication, don't call, and don't visit. That's how it was in the beginning,” Shannon recalled. “It took me six years before I saw my children again. I was respecting my dad to let the kids transition. He felt that was the best thing for them.”

Despite her struggles with addiction in the past, Shannon revealed that she’s doing much better and is now “clean and sober.”

“I am a recovering addict and will always be an addict. But there's a way [to recovery],” Shannon explained. “You have to learn to stay away from people, places and things. Change your routine and live your life. Live your best life.”

She continued, “I'm not the person I used to be. I'm okay, today. I'm a loving person. I'd give you the shirt off my back. I'm very different from what I've been portrayed.”