Simone Biles has been living her best life. She attended the Milano Cortina Olympics as a spectator in February and launched her restaurant, A Taste of Gold, in Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport in March. Most recently, Simone attended the Laureaus World Sports Awards in Madrid, which honored her last year as a Sportswoman of the Year. In Madrid, she walked the red carpet in an ivory feathered minidress by Cong Tri. She was styled by Marc Desir. The dress is a bit unconventional, but she really rocked it. Her hair and makeup were stunning, too.
Simone, who always keeps it real on social media, recently made a TikTok video that broke down how much her appearance at the awards event actually cost. While acknowledging that everything is “expensive as f-ck” nowadays, Simone said that her glam squad bill cost $23k. She asked any of her followers who would be in the know if that price tag was the norm.
In a TikTok video shared on Monday night, the gymnast divulged the shocking amount she spent getting glam with the help of a professional team.
“We need to have a discussion … I just need to know if this is normal,” the gymnast asked the camera, wearing a tight brown T-shirt and matching sweatpants.
“I know going outside is expensive as f—k these days, but like is it this expensive, ok?” she began.
Without referencing a specific event, the gold medalist revealed that between her stylist, hair and makeup artists, her “grand total” for a recent outing came to $23,000, adding, “I just want to know, is that f—king normal?”
Biles deadpanned, “If that’s the new norm, y’all can have it. Y’all will never see me at another event.”
“I’m going to sit my ass right here where it’s free. I’ve been kind of spiraling since then,” she continued.
Her last red carpet appearance was on April 20 at the Laureaus World Sports Awards in Madrid, where the gymnast wowed in a sculptural minidress from Vietnamese brand Cong Tri, styled by Marc Desir.
“Basically the Oscars… but make it sports
,” she captioned the pics on Instagram. “First @laureussport World Sports Awards as an ambassador and I’m feeling inspired by every story in the room .” Though Biles flaunts her custom Owens looks and designer handbags sitting in the VIP box to support her husband on game days, she posted the video to question whether or not she had been financially taken advantage of in a way that she shouldn’t have been.
“There’s no ill intent,” she assured viewers, “I just need to know if this is normal,” adding, “there’s no way you are paying these prices each and every time … there’s just no way.”
Fans were aghast in the comment section, with fellow Olympian Mikaela Shiffrin chiming in, “Girl, I’ve been wondering the same
.”
$23,000 for hair/makeup/stylist fees seems like so much money to me. Some of those steep fees are likely for travel and accommodations, but I don’t blame Simone for asking her massive network if that’s the norm or not. Based on the responses she got in her comments, it seems like other people who’ve used glam squads before thought so too. I’ve always taken it for granted that when celebrities are dressed up for big events, the studios they’re representing pay for their clothing, jewelry, and hair/makeup. I also figured that influencers and athletes were a different story and that while they paid for their hair/makeup, some of them got the perk of wearing whatever they could promote for free. Simone is such a big draw that I can’t believe she had to pay so much for her red carpet look! She did the celebrity equivalent of asking around. I would do the exact same thing. She looked just as gorgeous as always at the event. Even so, if I were her, I wouldn’t want to drop that much money either.
Simone Biles is flipping out over the price tag of her recent red carpet event. (
: TikTok) pic.twitter.com/NNqVOpvJUO — E! News (@enews) April 29, 2026
Photos credit: José Oliva/Europa Press/Avalon, BFA.com/Backgrid, Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon, IMAGO/Alberto Gardin/Avalon, Jennifer Graylock-Graylock.com/Avalon