Making it to the Olympics requires hard work, talent, years of practice, and a strong drive to be the best. Sometimes, having a trust fund can also be helpful.
A few kids of billionaires will be in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Emma Navarro and Jessica Pegula will play tennis for Team USA, and Nayel Nassar, who is Bill Gates‘ son-in-law, will compete in horseback riding for Team Egypt.
Tennis Star Emma Navarro
Twenty-three-year-old Navarro, whose father Ben Navarro is worth $1.5 billion, got noticed earlier this year when she reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals by defeating Coco Gauff, the world’s No. 2 player.
Navarro grew up in Charleston, South Carolina, where her father has invested over $350 million in real estate. He has also funded her tennis career. In 2022, his company Beemok Capital bought the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati, the third-largest tennis tournament in the U.S.
Tennis Player Jessica Pegula
Pegula, who was previously ranked No. 3 in the world, is going to her second Olympics after competing in the delayed 2020 Games. At 30 years old, she’s heading to the Olympics just a few months after winning the Berlin Ladies Open.
Her father, Terrence Pegula, is worth $10.8 billion, according to Forbes, and is well-known in sports. After earning money from oil and gas, he bought the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres and the NFL’s Buffalo Bills, paying $1.4 billion for the Bills in 2014.
Jennifer Gates’ Husband, While LeBron James Returns
Jennifer Gates, Nassar’s husband, who is Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates’ eldest daughter, is competing in his second Olympics. He finished 24th in equestrian jumping at the 2020 Games. Together with Gates Nassar, he runs Evergate Stables, a group of training facilities based in Wellington, Florida, a popular spot for equestrian sports.
Equestrian sports have always been popular among the wealthy, with top horses costing millions and their upkeep adding hundreds of thousands each year. Anna Kasprzak, a Danish heiress with a billion-dollar fortune, finished 14th in the 2016 Olympics. Other billionaire children like Eve Jobs, Gates Nassar, and Georgina Bloomberg have also competed seriously in the sport.
At the 2024 Olympics, at least one self-made billionaire will be in the spotlight, LeBron James, who is worth $1.2 billion, according to Forbes, making him the richest competitor for now.
Conclusion
Getting to the Olympics requires a lot of hard work and talent, and sometimes having money helps too. At the 2024 Paris Games, kids of billionaires like Emma Navarro and Jessica Pegula will compete in tennis, and Nayel Nassar will ride horses for Egypt. LeBron James will be the richest athlete there.
