Paris: At eight o’clock on a warm Monday night in the Olympic city, Australia’s medal winners thus far stepped onto a luxury restaurant boat on the River Seine as the guest of mining heiress Gina Rinehart . Australia’s richest person, who pours millions of dollars of sponsorship into swimming, rowing and volleyball as well as the AOC, has also been Australia’s biggest fangirl at these Games. Brandishing a stuffed boxing kangaroo, she’s been spotted in a corporate box at the La Defense Arena pool with Dawn Fraser or in the stifling heat at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium to watch the rowing.
She watched the opening ceremony from a VIP vantage point, wearing a plastic poncho on account of the rain, like the rest of us slobs. Her cruise was just another example of her generosity — but it came with a couple of requests. Beforehand, athletes were asked to wear a pair of gold boots from Rossi, the South Australian shoe company Rinehart acquired last year, as well as shirts bearing the AOC emblem and her cattle empire’s clothing brand, S.
Kidman. Australian medal-winning swimmers Lani Pallister, Mollie O’Callaghan, Jamie Perkins, Meg Harris and Jenna Strauch arrive for the river cruise. Credit: Zoe Samios Every athlete wore the boots, but fewer wore the white-collared shirts.
A group of can-can dancers greeted guests when they arrived at the wharf, including AOC chair Ian Chesterman and chief executive Matt Carroll ..