NBC commentator Al Trautwig made an apology Monday after receiving backlash for claiming Simone Biles’ adoptive parents are not really her parents.
“I regret that I wasn’t more clear with my wording on the air,” Trautwig said in a statement emailed by NBC Sports, which was received by USA Today. “I compounded the error on Twitter, which I quickly corrected. To set the record straight, Ron and Nellie are Simone’s parents.
Simone Biles and her younger sister, Adria, were adopted by Ron and Nellie Biles in 2001. Their biological mother, and daughter of Ron and Nellie, Shanon Biles struggled with drugs and alcohol and the girls were placed in foster care before being adopted.
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When Trautwig referred to Ron and Nellie as Biles’ grandparents, Sunday a woman corrected via Twitter, tweeting that he should be referring to them as her parents. He tweeted back, “They may be mom and dad but they are NOT her parents.”
So @AlTrautwig deleted his horribly rude & insulting comment but guess what, screenshot. @NBCOlympics #simonebiles pic.twitter.com/m6EtwJi1Ln
— Jen Talley (@jenunexpected) August 8, 2016
NBC says they have addressed the situation with Trautwig.