What’s More Surprising: That Norway Has a King, or That He’s Living on a Boat in Toronto?

Colin Rabyniuk August 26, 2016

His Majesty Harald V, son of Olav, member of the House of Glücksburg, three-time Olympian, captain of the Sira, an eight-metre “sloop”, and king of Norway, is in Toronto right now. Like, at this very moment. Can you feel it?

I know because the National Post told me so.

So, I interviewed the King of Norway, on his boat. He races. He is 79. He is one cool king. https://t.co/hasBBn15U2 pic.twitter.com/8ZXPAnkRkf

— Joe O'Connor (@oconnorwrites) August 26, 2016

King Harald, 79, is here to race in the final leg of the Sira Cup, a prized international sailing trophy his father donated back in the ’80s.

Here’s what you need to know about ole Harry, though. For all the pomp and circumstance of monarchy – the inbreeding, the donated sailing trophies, the 256-foot yacht currently moored in Toronto’s harbour – Harald is just, like, a very normal guy. He likes his socks white and his post-race beer cold. He is not a typical King, but a Cool King. On the Sira, the crew just call him Harald! Harald!

In fact, Harald’s such a regular guy, he even likes to uncomfortably complain about his wife Sonja:

“We lead a very normal life,” Harry boy told the Post this week.

His normalcy even extends to being bad at sports! In the Sira Cup race earlier on Wednesday, he and his crew came ninth out of 12 boats. Fun!

With a net worth estimated at a mere €9.4 million, Harald is actually one of Europe’s poorest monarchs, which maybe explains why he likes to schlub it so hard at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club on the Toronto Islands.

Earlier this year Norweigan newspaper Dagbladet estimated that the country’s royals cost about twice as much as stated in the government’s official budget, while the royal salaries have doubled since 2002.

Must be nice to be such a normal guy.