Zara Tindall’s father Mark Phillips and the former husband of Princess Anne, won gold with the British equestrian team in 1972. Zara Tindall won a silver medal as a member of the Great British equestrian eventing team at the London 2012 Olympics.
It is not only British royals who have competed in the Olympics, Princess Charlene of Monaco, formerly known as Charlene Wittstock swam for South Africa in the Olympics in 2000. Her husband, Prince Albert of Monaco competed for Monaco in the bobsleigh event from 1988 to 2002 in five consecutive Winter Olympics.
As well as being the Spanish Olympic team’s flag bearer at the 1992 Barcelona games, King Felipe, the then Prince Felipe was a member of their Spanish sailing team. Other royals who have competed over the years Include Norway’s King Olav V in 1928, King Harald V of Norway in 1964, 1968 and 1972, King Constantine of Greece in 1960, and Princess Cristina of Spain in 1988.
Royals are not the only well-known faces who have competed in the Olympics, Jessica Springsteen, the daughter of the legendary Bruce Springsteen won silver with the US equestrian team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
In 1948, actor Harold Sakata who played the villain Oddjob in the James Bond movie Goldfinger, won a silver medal for the US in weightlifting at the London Olympics. Take a read of other celebrities who were lucky enough to compete in the Olympics.
9. Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss of the USA at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
Tyler Winkelvoss who co-founded the social media network that became Facebook, competed whilst he was at Harvard in the coxless pairs rowing event at the Bejiing Olympics in 2008 | Getty Images