29 JANUARY 2003
An 18th birthday is a milestone in any young woman's life, but for Athina Roussel today is of monumental significance. When the Onassis heiress woke this morning she was one year older and several billion pounds richer. The young equestrian has already treated herself to an early present, in the shape of a thoroughbred showjumper worth over £1 million.

On her birthday itself, she flies from her new home in Belgium to Geneva and then on to Boislande, the mansion where her mother once lived. There the granddaughter and last direct descendant of Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis signs financial documents placing her at the head of the family empire. In doing so, young Athina becomes significantly more wealthy than Britain's Queen.

The young brunette's coming of age marks the end of years of bitter legal wrangling between her father Thierry Roussel and trustees over control of the Onassis estate, which has been in the care of a team of businessmen until today.