Olympics pundit under fire for saying Simone Biles’ adoptive parents are ‘not her parents’ An NBC pundit has come under fire after he refusing to name the adoptive parents of one of America’s most […]

An NBC pundit has come under fire after he refusing to name the adoptive parents of one of America’s most exciting Olympics athletes as her parents. Al Trautwig had already been criticised by gymnastics fans for his poor knowledge of the sport (something he himself admits) – a petition was even set up to remove him from commentating the event at Rio. However his latest comments about rising gymnastics star, Simone Biles, have incensed fans and parents alike after Trautwig referred to Biles’ mother and father as “not her parents”.

World Championship Gold Medals held by Simone Biles 2013 Antwerp – All-Around

2013 Antwerp – Floor Exercise

2014 Nanning – Team

2014 Nanning – All-Around

2014 Nanning – Balance Beam

2014 Nanning – Floor Exercise

2015 Glasgow – Team

2015 Glasgow – All-Around

2015 Glasgow – Balance Beam

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Biles and her young sister, Adria, spent time in care early on in their lives, while their birth mother struggled with drug and alcohol issues. At age three, they were taken in and adopted by their maternal grandfather, Ron, and his partner, Nellie.

Good parenting

Now tipped to be one of the stars of Rio 2016, Biles has consistently referred to Ron and Nellie as her parents – which they are legally, as well as emotionally – but NBC’s Trautwig has not. Instead, on air he called them “Simone’s grandparents” and “Ron and his wife”, angering a number of viewers.



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One viewer Emily Mingus tweeted at Trautwig, saying: “Hey @AlTrautwig stop calling her parents her grandfather and his wife. A. Nelly is much more important than ‘his wife’ B. They are her parents.”

In response, Trautwig tweeted: “They may be her mom and dad but the are not her parents.” It was later deleted.

The comment stands in stark contrast to Twitter messages between Biles and her mother – featured in an NBC Olympics story – in which Biles and shared a series of loving tweets with Nellie, referring to her as “Mom”. Her supporters also pointed to an Instagram post of the pair together on for her mother’s birthday, which Biles captioned: “Happy birthday to the queen of the house and the best mom a girl could ever ask for.” Another Instagram post pictured her with her Ron, with the comment: “Happy Father’s Day. Thank you for always protecting me, I love you!”

Adoptive parents hit back

Adoptive parents also received Trautwig’s comment poorly. Carrie Goldman, a Chicago-based journalist and adoptive mother wrote: “It is a terrible blow to adoptive families everywhere. It threatens the legitimacy of Simone’s own self-identity.

“It is not Al Trautwig’s place to say whether or not Ron and Nellie are Simone’s parents. His tweet brings back the pain that adoptees feel every time they are told that their mom and dad are not their real parents.”

An NBC spokesperson said: “We became aware of the situation last night and addressed it with Al quickly.”

Trautwig himself appeared willing to see the error of his ways, telling i: “I regret that I wasn’t more clear in my wording on the air. I compounded the error on Twitter, which I quickly corrected. To set the record straight, Ron and Nellie are Simone’s parents.”

His tweet brings back the pain that adoptees feel every time they are told that their mom and dad are not their real parents Carrie Goldman

The petition to have Trautwig removed – originally set up on the grounds he was “intentionally ignorant” of gymnastics – also gained momentum after Trautwig’s views became known.

“What an incredibly insensitive comment to make, not to mention ignorant,” said one signatory. “Congratulations for insulting every adoptive parent with that remark. As a the mother of two children my husband (their father) husband and I are parents to, I am disgusted with you.”

Another commenter said: “Get rid all together. Full on disciplinary action is needed in my opinion. Such ignorance should not ever be allowed to air on television and certainly not during such a world wide massive event!”