In 1976, Princess Anne became the first member of the British royal family to compete in the Olympics.
Princess Anne rode Queen Elizabeth’s horse named Goodwill in the three-day equestrian event at the Montreal Olympics. During the event, her horse fell, taking Anne with it, but she got back on and rode through a concussion to finish the course.
In 1988, she became a member of the International Olympic Committee. She is honorary president of the British Olympic Association.
Captain Mark Phillips was a member of the British Olympic equestrian team, which won a gold medal in 1972 and a silver medal in 1988.
Phillips completed twice — first in 1972 and 1988.
In 1972 — a year before he married Princess Anne — Phillips won gold with the British equestrian team in 1972. He placed 35th individually.
Despite being on the team in 1988, he never actually competed in the event because his horse was injured. Nevertheless, he still won a silver medal.
Princess Anne and Phillips’ daughter, Zara Tindall, won a silver medal at the 2012 Olympics in London.
Tindall, who is Queen Elizabeth’s granddaughter, became the first member of the immediate British royal family to win an Olympic medal when the British eventing team took home the silver medal.
Prince William and Kate Middleton sat in the audience to cheer her on as she competed in dressage, cross-country, and jumping events on horseback.
Before she married Prince Albert II of Monaco, Princess Charlene competed in swimming at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
Princess Charlene, then known as Charlene Wittstock, was part of the South African team in the 4x 100 medley relay, which ended up placing fifth.
Her passion for swimming is also how she met her future husband, Prince Albert, at a swimming competition he was presiding over.
Prince Albert II was also an Olympian, competing on Monaco’s bobsleigh team at five consecutive Olympic Games between 1988 and 2002.
The royal competed for Monaco in both the two-man and four-man bobsleigh competitions at the Winter Olympics in 1988, 1992, 1994, 1998, and 2002.
King Felipe VI was part of Spain’s Olympic sailing team at the 1992 games held in Barcelona.
Before he ascended to the throne, Felipe was a member of the Spanish Olympic sailing team at the 1992 Summer Olympics held in Barcelona, where his team finished sixth in the Soling class.
During the games, which took place on his native soil, he was also the Spanish Olympic team’s flag bearer.
His natural talent for sailing clearly ran in the family, as his uncle, King Constantine II of Greece, was on the Greek sailing team at the 1960 Olympics, while his father and sister were also Olympic sailors for Spain.
King Felipe’s sister, Princess Cristina of Spain, was a member of the Spanish sailing team at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.
Princess Cristina did not come away with any medals.
Like her brother, she also carried the Spanish flag at the opening ceremony of that year’s games.
Norway’s King Olav V won a gold medal in sailing at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam.
Then Prince Olav, the future king, reached the pinnacle of his sailing career when he won a gold medal in the 6 m mixed event.
King Harald V of Norway competed in sailing at the Olympics three times before ascending to the throne.
Olav’s son and heir, King Harald carried the Norwegian flag at the opening ceremony of the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo.
He competed in sailing that year, as well as in the Mexico City in 1968 and Munich in 1972 games, but never medal led.
Iñaki Urdangarin, who is married to Princess Cristina, won two bronze Olympic medals in handball.
Urdangarin was previously married to Infanta Cristina, the younger daughter of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía of Spain, between 1997 and 2023.
Before his royal match, he competed in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, won a bronze medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, and won another bronze medal in Sydney in 2000.
He was convicted of tax fraud, embezzlement, and influence peddling in 2018 and is currently serving out his prison sentence in Spain.
Princess Haya of Jordan competed in show jumping at the 2000 Olympic Games.
Princess Haya is the first Jordanian athlete to turn professional.
She represented the country in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia but came away empty handed.
She also served as a member of the International Olympic Committee from 2007 to 2014.
Sheikha Maitha Al Maktoum made history when she competed in martial arts at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
The daughter of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktom made history as the first woman from the UAE to represent the country in the 2008 Olympics in Taekwondo.
She was also the first woman to carry the national flag of the UAE at the games.
Prince Birabongse Bhanudej Bhanubandh of Siam competed in four consecutive Olympic games as part of his country’s sailing squad.
The Thai prince was not only the first South East Asian to compete in Formula One, but also a member of his country’s sailing team at four Olympic games.
He competed at the 1956 Melbourne, 1960 Rome, 1964 Tokyo, and 1972 Munich Olympics, although he never won any medals.
