Bears safety Jonathan Owens returned from his first ever trip to Paris last Sunday with a special memento from the Olympics.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday at Halas Hall, he proudly wore a lanyard around his neck that was adorned with a slew of Olympic pins.
"My favorite pin would be the one I went there with and that's the Simone Biles pin right there," Owens said. "Yeah, that's my wife. It was specially made with her autograph on there so you can only get it from her or a family member. I had to make sure I kept a few of those on here to tease people like, 'No, you can't get it, I'm sorry.'"
The husband of the greatest gymnast in U.S. history was granted permission by the Bears to miss part of training camp to go watch his wife compete in the Olympics. And he came back with not only pins, but memories that will last a lifetime.
Biles won three gold medals and one silver medal, increasing her career total to seven gold medals and 11 Olympic medals overall. Add her 30 World Championship medals, and she is the most accomplished gymnast of all time.
"Just being able to see her, I was super excited," Owens said. "Overjoyed for her. All of her accomplishments that she's made. Just being a face for gymnastics, man. She became the most decorated American gymnast ever. So, it was amazing that I was able to be there and witness that for her."
Owens is most proud of his wife's resiliency, especially after watching her battle through a calf injury she aggravated while warming up at the Olympics.
"The first day when she had the injury to her calf and just her ability to persevere through that and go out there and still dominate, it was amazing to watch," Owens said. "My wife is a warrior. That's the one thing I tell people because I equate it to how we are in football. You limp around and it will hurt a little bit right before. But as soon as you go, it's like you forget about it. Just pain tolerance and the way she was able to go out there and look graceful with everything, people really didn't have a clue what was going on. I'm just so happy and proud for her."
Owens enjoyed seeing social media posts of him supporting his wife in the stands at the Olympics. In one, the couple forms hearts with their fingers toward each other.
"It's pretty cool, but that's just me being genuine," Owens said. "You can't hide your excitement when you're out there because of how much I love her and how proud I am for her. I know how much work she's put in to get to that point. How many people in the world can say they have a gold medal? So I always want to be able to celebrate that with her."
Owens loved sitting in the stands and hearing multiple languages being spoken. Though he didn't always understand what was being said, he realized that every fan had something in common.
"Competition is universal," Owens said. "So everyone is in there stressed and cheering for whoever you're there to support. I didn't know Brazil [fans] would be in front of me putting their flag up, so I'm standing up like 'U-S-A! U-S-A!' It was a pretty dope experience."
While in Paris, Owens visited the Louvre and saw the Mona Lisa. He also watched the Bears take on the Texans in the Hall of Fame Game live in the wee hours of the morning.
Now back at training camp, Owens is grateful that the Bears allowed him to share such a special experience with his wife.
"I just feel like it was one of those things where the stars just aligned," he said. "I still have a job here at the end of the day. My coaches were calling me to see how I was doing, making sure I was getting rest. Obviously, they want to congratulate Simone and everything, but they were also just keeping me up to date on what's going on.
"I had my iPad, so I was able to watch film, any practices that I missed. And when they did play, I think it was 2 a.m. in the morning Paris time, I stayed up and watched the game until the rain delay just to support the guys. Like I said, I was happy they allowed me to go."
