Sometimes, silence speaks louder than medals. When Simone Biles vanishes from X (formerly Twitter), it’s never just a technical glitch or a casual scroll break; it’s something deeper, something human. She doesn’t announce her exit with hashtags or dramatic statements. She just… disappears. And that absence often echoes louder than her words ever could. So, when did she recently delete her Twitter account? Well, recently, after a heated controversy, it quietly disappeared. It’s actually the second time she’s done it. Second time, how?
In late 2023, Simone Biles found herself at the center of unwanted internet drama, not because of her gymnastics, but because of a comment made by her husband, NFL safety Jonathan Owens. During his appearance on The Pivot podcast, Owens joked that he was “the catch” in their relationship implying he was the prize. He added, “didn’t know who she was at the time… the first thing I saw was that she just had a bunch of followers, so in my mind I’m like, ‘OK, she’s gotta be good.’” That led to backlash.
Social media users accused him of arrogance, questioned their marriage, and began attacking both him and Biles. She initially clapped back with a sharp tweet, “Are y’all done yet?” but the backlash only grew, with daily memes, opinion pieces, and threads speculating on her self-worth and painting her as undervalued in her relationship.
Final: Artistic gymnastics – Paris 2024 – Floor August 05 2024: Simone Biles United States of America competes during floor final on Day 10 of the Olympic Games, Olympische Spiele, Olympia, OS at Bercy Arena, Paris, France. Ulrik Pedersen/CSM. Credit Image: Â Ulrik Pedersen/Cal Media Paris France EDITORIAL USE ONLY Copyright: xx ZUMA-20240805_zma_c04_162.jpg UlrikxPedersenx csmphotothree277622
The negativity quickly became overwhelming. Fans were even urging Simone to get divorced, saying things like he doesn’t deserve you and posting countless hurtful comments. Eventually, Simone Biles quietly deleted her X (formerly Twitter) account. The real reason came to light months later in the October 2024 Netflix docuseries Simone Biles: Rising, where she admitted, “I deleted Twitter shortly after” the controversy. She added strangers, “Equate our love to the amount of trophies and medals and accolades that I have, and that’s not how you measure love.”
Though she stayed active on Instagram, sharing loved-up photos with Owens, captioned “Unbothered” and “for life,” she made a conscious decision to step away from Twitter’s harsh environment. The message was clear: protecting her peace mattered more than public opinion. Now, flash forward to 2025, and she’s doing the same—protecting her peace. But this time, it feels heavier. So, what exactly did happen this time?
Why Simone Biles logged off for the second time?
On June 23, 2025, Simone Biles deactivated her X (formerly Twitter) account after a fiery online exchange with former swimmer and conservative activist Riley Gaines. What triggered it this time? A national firestorm around transgender athletes. And a feud with one of the most vocal critics of trans inclusion in sports – Riley Gaines. The controversy began in June 2025 when Gaines reposted a photo of a softball team led by a transgender girl celebrating a state title. With the comments turned off, Gaines remarked sarcastically, “Comments off lol. To be expected when your star player is a boy.” But Biles, being Biles, came to her rescue!
Biles passionately defended the athlete, calling Gaines a “sore loser” and accusing her of bullying trans youth instead of building inclusive solutions. As Biles put it, “Bully someone your own size, which would ironically be a male.” But Gaines wasn’t done. She dug up a 2017 tweet where Biles appeared to share her view. “ahhhh good thing guys don’t compete against girls or he’d take all the gold medals !!”
BREAKING After getting embarrassed by Riley Gaines, Simone Biles has shut down her 𝕏 account
GOOD RIDDANCE pic.twitter.com/OW4ukYMuPn
— MAGA Voice (@MAGAVoice) June 23, 2025
Simone Biles’ 2017 tweet, reacting to men’s gymnastics results, resurfaced as Gaines reposted it to highlight what she saw as a contradiction: “Oop don’t you hate it when your past self completely undermines your current nonsensical argument?” Then she doubled down: “How has 2025 Simone reconciled with the fact 2017 Simone was a ‘truly sick bully’ by her own standard?” What followed was a digital firestorm.
Biles’ tweets, some sharp, some emotional, sparked intense backlash. Sports figures like Danica Patrick and even her former Olympic teammate MyKayla Skinner accused Biles of crossing a line. Despite later apologizing and clarifying her intent to support both competitive equity and inclusion, the damage had been done. Several users noticed soon after that Biles’ X profile read: “This account doesn’t exist.” Despite Gaines accepting the apology and calling Biles “the greatest female gymnast of all time,” the damage was done, but maybe not dusted. But does that mean Simone Biles deleted other social media accounts, too?
Well, No! Her other social media platforms remain active. But the decision to delete only her X account, while leaving others untouched, wasn’t lost on fans or critics. Gaines responded to Biles’ exit, calling it “sad to see such a phenom go down like this,” while also claiming Biles made “a morally indefensible take,” was “rightfully ridiculed,” apologized “grovelingly,” and finally “deleted (her) account to pretend it never happened.” Whether Gaines’ commentary was fair or harsh, it showed just how polarizing Simone Biles’ involvement had become, and why stepping back may have been the healthiest move she could make. Sometimes, the loudest thing Simone Biles says… is nothing at all.
The post Every Time Simone Biles Vanished From Twitter, And Why This One Feels Different appeared first on EssentiallySports.
