Billionaire Bill Gates Once Splurged $1 Million to Sponsor Daughter’s Sports Career at 15

Being one of the richest people in the world gives one a chance to indulge in expensive hobbies. Bill Gates once made headlines when he delved into the equestrian world for his daughter. Back then, 15-year-old Jennifer Gates developed a love for horse riding and wanted to pursue her dreams further. So, who better than daddy dearest to step in and help her fulfill her wishes?

In order to help her train for the Winter Equestrian Festival in Florida, Gates rented a mansion for his daughter, as reported by Daily Mail in 2012. But this was no average, run-of-the-mill house. Gates had special arrangements that cost him millions. Let’s dive deeper into what the $1 million splurge included.

Bill Gates left no stone unturned to enable his daughter’s goals

Participating in the horse-riding championship required a lot of training and dedication. While Jennifer was up for it, her father took things up a notch. The billionaire began by renting a 7,300 sq ft, eight-bedroom mansion with equestrian facilities. In order to encourage practice, he also leased four horses and corresponding trainers for them. All of them had access to stables built in the mansion.

What started as a simple situation of renting a house blew out of proportion. The mansion not only boasted of multiple bedrooms and a dedicated space for horses but also a barn, a guarded access road, a wine cellar, and a media room. Jennifer was preparing to compete in one of the children’s jumping divisions, and therefore the horses leased were specialized in jumping.

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The Winter Equestrian Festival has multiple divisions and $6 million worth of prize money. Participating in each division in 2012 cost about $45, and the prize money ranged from $1,500 – $2,000. However, Gates also shelled out money to rent the mansion for about six months. Additionally, the billionaire arranged for private jets for the family to move back and forth between Florida and Washington. All of this mounted up to about $1 million. Currently, Jennifer is happily married to the equestrian champion Nayel Nassar.

Jennifer and Nayel’s new crib at the Big Apple

Time flies as the eldest Gates daughter recently became a mother to a baby girl, along with Olympian, Nayel Nassar. In search of a new house, the equestrian couple landed upon Formula 1 star, Lewis Hamilton’s luxurious penthouse in New York.

The property boasted of six bedrooms, 20-foot-high ceilings, and multiple terraces. While Hamilton agreed to sell it after he never got a chance to experience the luxury, the price tag wasn’t cheap. It cost Gates and Nassar a whopping $51 million. And now that the equestrian enthusiasts have a baby girl, only time will tell if they have another horse-riding champion in the making.

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