Eileen Gu Ailing and the female athletes that luxury brands (and the world) have fallen in love with

Luxury brands used to lean heavily on film stars and pop icons. Today, they’re turning to athletes — and increasingly, female athletes such as Eileen Gu Ailing. Not for token nor trend value, but because these women represent something powerful and very real: earned excellence.

In celebration of International Women’s Day, we profile Gu and other shining stars who are winning over the most powerful brands in the world — and our hearts.

Eileen Gu Ailing: Freestyle Skiing

Eileen Gu is everywhere in our consciousness today. The most decorated freestyle skier in Olympic Games history. Fashion week regular. High fashion model. Stanford student. Cultural bridge between China and, essentially, all parts of the world.

As an ambassador for IWC Schaffhausen, the 22-year-old fits the Swiss brand effortlessly. Precision, ambition, engineering excellence — these aren’t abstract values for her. They’re lived and honed daily. Her competitive record is extraordinary: 20 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup victories, and a win rate that most athletes can only dream of.

What makes the difference? Gu’s mindset. “You can control what you think. You can control how you think. And therefore, you can control who you are... The fact is, I get to become, every day, the kind of person that me, at age eight, would revere,” she said in a recent press conference following her gold medal win for the Women’s Halfpipe event at Milan Cortina Winter Olympic Games.

Her answer says everything. Simple and honest, it explains why young girls, or boys, look at her and see possibilities unfold.

IWC’s long-standing partnership with Laureus Sport for Good, which supports youth through sport, feels natural alongside her advocacy. Beyond just showing up, Gu mentors and engages. She doesn’t just wear a watch — she stands for something bigger.

Zheng Qinwen: Tennis

Zheng Qinwen’s Olympic gold at Paris 2024 didn’t just make headlines in China, it made her a global name. Now a global ambassador for the French house of Dior, the 23-year-old Chinese tennis player and holder of five titles represents what the house describes as elegance and boldness in motion.

And that’s exactly how she plays — aggressive, confident, and composed under pressure. There’s something fitting about a tennis champion partnering with Dior. The sport demands control and poise. So does couture. Zheng brings both.

For young athletes, especially in Asia, she represents something important: you can be powerful and feminine at the same time. You don’t have to shrink to succeed, or shrink in spite of success.

Nelly Korda: Golf

US golfer Nelly Korda has steadily built one of the most dominant portfolios in women’s golf. A former World No. 1 and Olympic gold medallist, she recently returned to peak form with multiple LPGA victories and a major championship title run that reaffirmed her position at the top of the sport. And her winning style: steady drives, calm putting, disciplined decision-making under pressure.

As a long-time friend and partner of Richard Mille, the 28-year-old is the face of the ultra-light RM 07-01, a highly robust watch built to withstand the physical demands of elite sport without compromising refinement. That balance, power, and precision reflects her game.

Golf, like high watchmaking, rewards patience. It demands consistency over four days, not flashes of brilliance. In that sense, Korda represents the kind of sustained excellence that Richard Mille values — exceptional performance engineered for endurance.

Mujinga Kambundji: Sprinting

Mujinga Kambundji built her reputation step by step. National records. European titles. Becoming the first Swiss woman to run under 11 seconds in the 100m. She’s not the loudest presence on the track, but she’s one of the most consistent.

As part of the Hublot family of “friends”, the 34-year-old sprinter represents a different kind of strength — steady progress, discipline, and resilience. Sprinting is brutal. You either deliver or you don’t, with the race over in seconds.

What stands out about Kambundji is her persistence, year after year. Championship after championship. That kind of reliability might not always trend online, but it builds respect. In many ways, Kambundji mirrors Hublot’s philosophy of “The Art of Fusion”, proving that true performance, whether on the track or in watchmaking, is built on balance as much as speed.

Sam Kerr: Football

Australia’s all-time leading goal scorer and the only female footballer to win FIFA’s Golden Boot in three different leagues across three continents, she has spent her career proving that women’s football deserves the same stage and respect as the men’s game. And none other than Richard Mille backs her vision proudly.

Now welcomed as a brand partner and friend by Richard Mille, the 33-year-old brings that conviction to the partnership through her outspokenness about visibility, equality, and representation in sport. As she puts it, “Women should have the freedom to be whoever they want, and visibility is so important to making that happen.”

On the pitch, she is explosive and instinctive. Off it, Kerr wears the RM 07-04 Automatic Sport — lightweight, technical, and unapologetically bold. It is a watch that is built to stand up and stand out, just as she does.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone: Athletics

US track star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has made rewriting records look almost routine. A multiple Olympic champion and world record holder in the 400m hurdles event, she competes with a kind of calm authority that sets her apart.

In every race, her stride is measured, with each hurdle cleared with control. As an ambassador for TAG Heuer, the connection makes sense. Her event is about precision. Championships are decided by hundredths of a second, and margins matter.

What stands out most about the 27-year-old isn’t theatrics or showmanship, but the relentless pursuit of shaving off fractions of time. It’s the same principle that defines TAG Heuer’s watchmaking heritage, where performance is engineered down to the smallest unit and excellence is built on exacting detail.