Simone Biles Receives A Kiss From Zac Efron Following Team USA Gold Win

In 2016, Zac Efron flew to Rio specifically to meet U.S. Olympic gymnast Simone Biles at the Olympics. He later revealed that he felt compelled to do so when he found out she was a fan.

"When I found out Simone and the team were fans, I was like, 'What kind of a guy am I if I don't show up?’” the actor said on the "TODAY" show at the time.

As longtime fans of each other, Zac Efron flew to Paris to cheer on Simone Biles at the 2024 Olympics, where they recreated their iconic photo from 2016.

Efron mentioned that several people told him Biles was a huge fan, which led him to develop a greater interest in gymnastics.

“I started watching all the gymnastics," he explained on the "TODAY" show. "I typically wouldn't start watching gymnastics first in the Olympics, but I was immediately captivated by these girls," he added, referring to the Final Five.

The five members of the 2016 women's gymnastics team were Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas, Laurie Hernandez, Madison Kocian, and Aly Raisman, with MyKayla Skinner, Ragan Smith, and Ashton Locklear serving as the three alternates.

In 2016, Biles, at the age of 22, won two gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro—and Efron was there to cheer her on!

The Olympian shared a snap of her kissing Efron on the cheek in August 2016, and the two have recreated the moment nearly ten years later.

In the third slide of ESPN's post, Biles and Efron take a video selfie when the "High School Musical" actor is seen leaning in and giving Biles a smooch on her right cheek.

Biles immediately gushed as the crowd cheered in the background. (Look out, Jonathan Owens, it seems there is some competition in the house.)

Simone Biles, who is now married to NFL star Jonathan Owens, had a lifelong crush on Efron, revealing that she had a life-sized cardboard cutout of him back home in Texas. "I loved his movies, but mostly, I thought he was cute, and I’d heard that he’s really a good person," she said in a Cosmo cover.

Her dream came true after the actor flew out to Rio. "When I finally came out from behind Aly, he lifted me right up onto his hip and planted a big kiss on my cheek. I almost died," she added. "I was giggling so hard, all I could think was, This can’t be real life. This is too perfect to be real."

"Zac was as warm and welcoming as I’d always heard that he was," she added.

After the two made waves from fans shipping the two, matchmaker Susan Trombetti revealed her thoughts on what the relationship would look like.

"At first, it was innocent banter like when someone has a celebrity crush, but then it turned into 'Is it cute or is it actual flirting?' going on, leaving us to guess. They were almost flirting with us, and their flirtation was adorable," Trombetti explained, per The List.

"The cute banter going back and forth on X shows a strong connection, along with the fact that he flew to meet her during the last Olympics," Trombetti continued before adding that Biles "is a superstar, and he would be lucky to have her, but those cute videos of them kissing each other on the cheek show comfort and ease with each other and a strong connection."

Since they first met in 2016, they have stayed in touch. However, their potential romance has come to an end as Biles got married to Bears player Jonathan Owens in 2023.

"Alas, that strong connection is probably going to be a friendship for now since [Biles] is married," Trombetti noted. "I don't know if there is anything about them in particular that suggests things wouldn't have worked out."