One of the coolest things about the Olympic Games is that its athletes come from all walks of life and from all around the world. And that includes a walk of life that isn't very common: having a super famous father, who's been beloved worldwide for five decades. One of the competitors heading to the Olympics this year is Bruce Springsteen's daughter, Jessica Springsteen. The 29-year-old made Team USA's equestrian jumping team, as announced on June 5.
Jessica is one of Bruce's three children with his second wife, Patti Scialfa. They also have two sons, 30-year-old Evan and 27-year-old Sam. While this isn't her first time being part of the Olympics, it is the first time that she's officially competing. Read on to find out more and to see Jessica in action.
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Jessica is part of a four-person team.
Gennaro Leonardi Photos / Shutterstock.comOn Monday, the United States Equestrian Foundation announced the four athletes who will be part of the U.S. jumping team at this year's Tokyo Olympics. Jessica and her horse Don Juan Van de Donkhoeve will join Kent Farrington, Laura Kraut, and McLain Ward in the international competition.
Jessica was previously part of the Olympic team for the London Olympics in 2012. She was chosen as an alternate and didn't end up competing. As for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016, she didn't make the team.
She's been riding horses since she was little.
Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic via Getty ImagesJessica's U.S. Equestrian Foundation bio explains that she started taking horse riding lessons when she was five years old. She's been successful in many competitions over the years, including when she was a junior rider, and has won several. According to Just Jared, she is currently ranked No. 3 in the U.S. and No. 27 worldwide.
"I started training when my family moved to Colt’s Neck, New Jersey," Jessica told Parade in 2019. "We moved to a farm there and my mom started riding. I really wanted to take lessons. There was this stable literally across the street from my house, one of the top training barns in the country. They said I was too young—I was like four years old—but they told me about a place where they train little kids on ponies. So I went there for a little bit. And then I started to train at Beacon Hill Show Stables until I was 18 years old. It was kind of meant to be."
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The Boss loves watching her compete.
Gennaro Leonardi Photos / Shutterstock.comIn her interview with Parade, Jessica shared that her parents have different reactions to watching her in competition. "My mom gets nervous because she wants me to do well," she said. "But my dad actually finds it really relaxing to come out to the shows and just sit and watch. It’s become such a passion for both of them, which is amazing for me that I get to share it with them. I get to see them a lot which is really nice."
Her family may be musical, but Jessica didn't inherit that passion.
Ron Adar / Shutterstock.com"I was always really focused on riding," Jessica told Parade when asked if she ever got into music like her parents. Not only is Bruce a musician, Scialfa is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and a member of Bruce's E Street Band. "I would take piano lessons on Monday because Monday is the day off from riding," Jessica continued. "But then I was always annoyed that I had to have a piano lesson on my day off. I feel like I never really had a real talent. It didn’t come so easy to me."
She also didn't get into her dad's music right away. "When my brothers and I were little, we would go on tour with Dad—but we'd watch the first half of the performance, then fall asleep," Jessica told Teen Vogue in 2015. "When I was in college, he was playing right by my school, so I brought my friends. They had so much fun, it made me get into it. That was the first time I'd watched a whole show!"
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