Birth Name : Athina Helene Roussel
Date of Birth : 29 January 1985, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France
Occupation : Greek Show jumping rider, Patroness, Global Champions Tour
Owner, AD Sport Horses, Heiress
Athina Onassis Roussel was born on January 29, 1985 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. She is a show jumper and heiress. Athina Onassis Roussel is the daughter of Christina Onassis and Thierry Roussel her mother's fourth husband who is a French pharmaceutical heir. Her uncle Alexander died when she was 12 years old and when she was 14 years old her grandmother Tina died. After a decade her grandfather Aristotle died. Her mother died when she was 3 years old. After her mother died her father and her step mother Marianne "Gaby" Landhage, a Swedish model. She studied in a school in Lussy-sur-Morges, where the Roussels lived in a five-bedroom villa. She did her preparatory course in Brussels and in 2003 she passed her Baccalaureat exam.
On her 18th birthday, she was of legal age to take control of her inheritance. On her 21st birthday, she did not take control of the other half or become the president of the Onassis Foundation, with assets in excess of US$2.1 billion. The Foundation's Board has made public that they have no interest in turning over control to Onassis de Miranda, whom they say has no real qualifications to take on the role. Moreover, the Onassis Foundation officially denies that she ever was an heir to the estate of Aristotle Onassis; they acknowledge her only as heiress to her mother's fortune.
Taking control of the organisation has proved more difficult than Athina might have expected. In 2005 administrators changed its founding charter, removing Athina's automatic birthright to become chairman on her 21st birthday. They insist that as she knows little of Greek culture and does not speak the language, she has no right to head up such an important organisation. The young equestrian seems determined to secure this part of her birthright, however, and has learned Greek in a bid to win over the foundation's executives.
The Board has arranged to modify the Statutes of the Foundation so that Athina would not become head of the Foundation automatically upon completing 21 years of age. Her lawyers contested the validity of the changes and promise to fight for her stated desire to be President of the Foundation as of January 2006, when she turned 21.
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