There’s a new bride-to-be in town! Georgina Bloomberg, 39, the daughter of Bloomberg LP co-founder and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, 80, said, “Yes,” when her boyfriend of three years, Justin Waterman, 42, popped the question. “Justin gave Georgina a beautiful diamond ring, and the good news is that Mike likes him,” a source told Page Six on April 27. “That said, they are working on a prenup.”
Besides the fact that she’s the wealthy daughter of Mike Bloomberg, who’s estimated to be worth $86 billion, and marrying a wealthy man himself (Waterman is a partner at investment firm Summit Trail), there’s much more than what meets the eye – or in this case, the name – when it comes to Georgina. Learn all there is to know about her below.
Georgina Bloomberg is an accomplished equestrian
Georgina has been horseback riding since she was 4 years old, according to her professional website, and she has enjoyed an impressive career. Per her website, she has won more than half a million dollars in prize money through various prestigious competitions including the Empire State Grand Prix in 2010, the Central Park Grand Prix CSI3 in 2014, and the Adequan Grand Prix CSI3 at the 2015 Winter Equestrian Festival. She also led the US team to victory in the Furusiyya Nations Cup in Spain in 2014. She now owns and captains the highly competitive New York Empire equestrian team.
And despite having such a successful career, riding has taken quite a mental and physical toll on the youngest daughter of Michael Bloomberg. Georgina was born with a spinal condition called spondylolisthesis, which caused her spine to curve to the left. That pre-existing condition paired with the nature of horseback riding wore on her back, causing it to break twice: once in 2002, and once in 2010. After the second injury, Georgina wrote on her website that she knew she had to take care of herself and opted to have a back-correcting surgery. She said after eight months of recovery, the life-changing operation worked wonders for her. Now she can ride without feeling so much constant pain, and she even said it improved her mental health. “Riding is a very physical sport, but it’s also a mental sport,” she explained in her blog post. “If you’re not in a good place mentally, you’re going to have trouble in the ring. You need to be very concentrated and aware of every jump.”
One thing that did not help her mental health were the accusations that she was only a successful rider because she had money, and those comments were not far and few in between. “It is a little frustrating when you work as hard as you possibly can and people only think you’re successful because of your father, which just isn’t true,” Georgina shared with The Washington Post in 2006, reflecting on the hate she received. “A lot of people who are that way are jealous.”
All animals hold a special place in Georgina Bloomberg’s heart
While riding is her passion and sport, Georgina has a soft spot for all animals. She is on the board of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). “And I work a lot for the Humane Society,” she told Town & Country in a 2016 interview. “While I love working with small charities that don’t have a lot of money, there is so much more that big organizations can do, particularly regarding legislation or lobbying to get things changed in Washington. They can raise funds on a different level than a smaller organization. They can get the NYPD involved in abuse cases in New York or organize massive puppy mill raids,” she passionately explained. She also revealed that she has a bustling household full of pets: six dogs, a rescue pig, and a rescue goat.
In addition to fighting for animal rights, Georgina founded The Rider’s Closet in 2006, whose mission is “to ensure that riding apparel is accessible to scholastic riding programs, pony clubs, equestrian camp programs, equine charities and individual riders in need,” according to her site.
Georgina Bloomberg is an educated writer
Georgina is not a stay-at-home daughter, if you couldn’t tell. In addition to dedicating her time to philanthropy, she supports her endeavors with a college degree. She graduated from New York University, per Gawker, and graduated from a fashion design course offered at Parsons The New School for Design. “I’ve always been interested in fashion, and I’m excited about the idea of designing riding clothes that are comfortable enough to wear riding but can also evolve into fashionable streetwear,” she gushed to Equestrian Living in 2012.
In addition, she has penned several young adult fiction books. She co-wrote a four-book series, called The A Circuit, with Catherine Hapka, which follows stories of “friendships, drama, and privilege set against the backdrop of competitive horseback riding,” according to Amazon. While the novels aren’t exactly based on Georgina’s life, she admitted to Equestrian Living that “there’s a little bit of” her in all the characters she created.
Georgina was not always a proud Bloomberg
Georgina was not always happy about coming from a successful and well-known family. In fact, she said in a 2003 documentary titled Born Rich that having her last name “sucks.” However, she later backtracked and said she learned to love her bloodline and family history. “I’ve come to have a lot more respect for my parents and my last name and everything that my father has done and how hard he worked to provide a great life for us. It’s a last name that now I’m proud of,” she noted in a 2017 interview with Town & Country.
Georgina Bloomberg is a mom of one
Before finding the love of her life to walk down the aisle with, Georgina was a single mother to her one son, Jasper Michael Brown Quintana, who she had with fellow equestrian Ramiro Quintana in 2013. She is the primary caretaker of her son and seems to think that’s the best thing for her and her son. “Jasper’s father will always be in his life and be a friend figure to him, but he is not involved in the day-to-day,” she told People in 2020. “It’s hard, but it’s much easier to do it by yourself than with the wrong person.”
Now, Georgina will not only no longer be a single mother, but she’ll also become a stepmother, as her fiancé shares three kids with his ex-wife, Meredith Bowen Waterman.