Ian Thorpe has a strong claim to being the greatest professional swimmer of all time. He won five Olympic gold medals over the course of his career, and also picked up five individual medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, more than any other individual athlete at the games. The next year, he won six gold medals in a single World Championship tournament. His incredible speed in the pool won the Australian the nickname 'Thorpedo.'
Thorpe had to deal with constant speculation about his sexuality both during and after his swimming career, which ended in 2006. Eight years later, during an interview with Michael Parkinson on British television, Thorpe finally confirmed that he was gay and said he wished he'd come out sooner, stating that it felt better to get it out in the open, and that he hoped he could now be an example to young people who felt like they had to stay quiet. He's been in a relationship with model Ryan Channing since 2016, and the couple plan on one day having children.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.