Arguably Britain’s greatest swimmer, Olympic Gold medallist and World Record holder, Rebecca Adlington OBE has an estimated net worth of £1.1 million.
Born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, on February 17, 1989, Rebecca Adlington began swimming when she was three years old and later went on to compete in the local leagues.
Did Adlington earn her millions from swimming alone or did she take on other sports?
Showing phenomenal improvement, Adlington broke the Commonwealth and National record by winning the 800-metre freestyle in a timing of 8:08.25 at the Ninth FINA World Swimming Championships held in Manchester (2008).
She then accompanied team Great Britain to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where she won the 400-metre freestyle Gold on August 11 clocking 4:03.22, becoming the first British woman since 1960’s Anita Lonsbrough achieved the feat. On August 16, Adlington won the 800-metre freestyle Gold, clocking a world record 8:14.10, breaking US swimmer Janet Evans’ record set in 1988. She became the first Brit to win two Gold medals or more from just one Olympic Games since 1908’s Henry Taylor bagged three. As a result, she was conferred the OBE in 2009.
End of 2008, she was awarded Sportswoman of the Year by the Sports Journalists’ Association and was ranked third best Sports Personality of the Year by the BBC. Her name was also given to one of the high-speed trains of Southeastern Class 395.
After two Bronzes at Rome’s Aquatics Championships (2009), she won the 400-metre freestyle Gold and the 4×200-metre freestyle Bronze at the European Swimming Championships (2010). Duplicating her Olympic double at the 2010 New Delhi Commonwealth Games, Adlington won two Golds again (800-metre and 400-metre freestyles). She also won two Bronzes (200-metre and 4×200-metre freestyles). That season Adlington ranked First and Second in the 800-metre and 400-metre freestyles respectively.
She then went on to win a Silver (400-metre freestyle) and a Gold (800-metre freestyle) in 2011’s Shanghai World Aquatics Championships.
The 2012 London Olympics saw Adlington manage two Bronzes (400 and 800-metre freestyles). Subsequently, she retired herself from the 800-metre event. Adlington’s four Olympic medals equals Katherine Grainger’s accomplishment as the most decorated female British Olympian.
Retiring from competitions in 2013, Adlington joined BBC’s aquatic pundits covering the Barcelona World Championships and Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
By the end of 2014, the dissolved Rebecca Adlington Ltd showed a net worth of £1.1 million.
Her TV show participation includes All Star Family Fortunes (2010, contestant), I Love My Country (2013, guest), I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (2013, contestant), Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (2013, contestant), A Question of Sport: Super Saturday (2014, guest), Loose Women (2014, guest) and The Jump (2016, contestant).