Riley Gaines is expecting her first child — and she made sure the internet knew exactly how she felt about Simone Biles in the process.
The 23-year-old former NCAA swimmer and outspoken women’s sports advocate revealed her pregnancy on Instagram Saturday, June 15, with a picture-perfect photo and a caption that instantly turned heads.
“surprise! we’re 26 weeks pregnant! 💕,” Gaines wrote alongside a photo of her and husband Louis Barker holding a sonogram and pink balloons. But it was the next line that caused waves.
“She’s already better at flips than Simone Biles,” Gaines quipped.
Yep. That Simone Biles.
The Olympic gymnastics legend — often called the greatest of all time — wasn’t tagged in the post, but fans didn’t need help connecting the dots. Gaines’ jab sparked immediate buzz in the comments and across social media, with some calling it “shady,” while others saw it as classic Riley: bold, brash, and unapologetically confident.
Gaines, who married fellow former swimmer Louis Barker in 2022, has built a second career around being outspoken. She rose to national attention not just for her collegiate swimming accolades at the University of Kentucky but for her activism around women’s sports. She’s frequently appeared on conservative media platforms and in political circles, particularly for her stance against transgender women competing in women’s sports.
So, it’s no surprise her pregnancy announcement came with a punchline — or, depending on how you read it, a pointed poke.
As of Sunday morning, the Instagram post had already racked up thousands of likes and comments. Some fans celebrated the growing family. Others questioned why a pregnancy reveal had to come with Olympic shade.
“Unnecessary dig,” one user wrote. “Let Simone enjoy her flips in peace.” Another countered, “Riley being Riley — love it!”
Gaines has yet to respond to the online reactions, but the caption remains unchanged.
Biles, for her part, hasn’t publicly commented — and likely won’t. The gymnast, who’s gearing up for the Paris 2024 Olympics, has been focused on her comeback tour and her own whirlwind life, including marriage to NFL player Jonathan Owens.
Still, the timing couldn’t have been more perfectly petty. One user on X (formerly Twitter) summed it up: “Riley Gaines turning a baby announcement into a Simone Biles diss is the most on-brand thing I’ve ever seen.”
Whether the line was meant in jest or jest-with-a-side-of-sauce, one thing’s clear: baby Gaines is already making headlines — and she hasn’t even arrived yet.