- Swimming legend got some bad news earlier this month
- Was one of Channel Nine’s Paris Olympics stars in August
Aussie sporting legend Ian Thorpe has been photographed looking down in the dumps at Sydney Airport soon after getting some bad news about one of his real estate properties.
The 42-year-old winner of five Olympic gold medals was seen preparing to fly out of the city by himself this week, dressed casually in T-shirt, sneakers and a pair of loose-fitting pants as he wheeled his luggage to the terminal.
Thorpe took a $200,000 blow to his hip pocket earlier this month, when it was revealed he has re-listed his townhouse in one of Sydney’s most exclusive suburbs for sale with a price tag of $3.5million.
That’s down from the $3.7million he was originally asking for the property in Woollahra in the city’s east, after failing to find a buyer.
The Sydney 2000 Olympics hero bought the superb four-bedroom, three-bathroom pad for $2.75million in December 2017.
His exquisite two-storey property sits on 250sqm and features spacious rooms, an outdoor swimming pool and a breathtaking outdoor tropical garden.
Thorpe has made extensive renovations, and it also features open-plan living areas, a stunning remodelled terrace and stylish sliding doors.
It is perfect for families and entertaining, and is located in a highly desirable location close to a variety of shopping hubs.
In 2023, letting agent Courtney Wong said the home is the ‘best one’ in the area, situated away from a busy street.
‘It’s completely private and secluded,’ he added.
A description of the property reads: ‘For those seeking a private escape with all the comforts of a luxury home, this is everything you could have dreamed of and more.’
‘A true gem tucked away at the quiet rear of a boutique block of only six, this residence represents the perfect mix of modernity and the natural world with its contemporary architectural design in a tranquil leafy setting.’
Thorpe – who starred on Channel Nine’s swimming commentary team for the Paris Olympics – went public with a devastating admission in September.
He revealed that an irregular result to a drug test plunged him into a depression so deep he thought about taking his own life.
When the result was revealed by a French newspaper, Thorpe obtained medical evidence that cleared his name, and sued the publication for reporting that his sample had elevated levels of testosterone and luteinising hormone.
At the time the revelation was so devastating he did not want to leave his house, feeling that mental health issues should be resolved personally, and contemplating attempting his own life and staging it as an accident.
‘An irregular test isn’t uncommon. They happen. So firstly, no one should know that information to begin with,’ Thorpe said.
‘An irregular test means nothing. An irregular test gets thrown out.’
It was one of many pressures Thorpe experienced during his sporting career.
At 14, Thorpe didn’t think he deserved to compete in the World Championships, wondered if winning the same tournament at 15 was a ‘fluke’, and felt mounting pressure at 17 to win gold at the Sydney Olympics.
‘People were assuming a result that hadn’t happened yet. I would be with my mother at the shop, and people would say, “We’ve got tickets to the Olympics, we can’t wait to see you win your first gold medal”,’ he said.
‘I couldn’t escape that part of it. Then it started being hyped up more and more and more. I was surrounded by it.’
