"The Dream". One half of the Twin Towers. The only player in history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and Finals MVP awards all inside the same season in the mid-1990s. It's the offensive players who claim all the glory, but Olajuwon was a wall in defense, and when he retired he was the league's all time block leader.
Born Nigerian, Olajuwon adopted American citizenship, which enabled him to play for the USA team in the 1996 Olympics, where he won a gold medal. Proud of his Muslim faith, it was noted that observing the fasting ceremony of Ramadan didn't seem to affect him at all, and indeed in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month for February despite observing fasting at the time. Beloved in the city of Houston for his sporting achievements, Olajuwon has built a property empire there, which makes sure his finances stay healthy in his retirement.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.