Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation translator denies ‘unfounded rumors’ she broke up famous couple
A BILL and Melinda Gates Foundation translator has vehemently denied “unfounded” claims that she broke up the famous philanthropists. Zhe “Shelly” Wang, 36, took to Twitter to blast the “rumors” and reports swirling about her relationship with the Microsoft mogul in the wake of his bombshell divorce announcement. A BBC analyst translated Wang’s response in […]
A BILL and Melinda Gates Foundation translator has vehemently denied “unfounded” claims that she broke up the famous philanthropists.
Zhe “Shelly” Wang, 36, took to Twitter to blast the “rumors” and reports swirling about her relationship with the Microsoft mogul in the wake of his bombshell divorce announcement.
A BBC analyst translated Wang’s response in Chinese to reports that she had “more than strictly professional relationship” with Bill.
The interpreter, who has worked for the foundation since 2015, dismissed the affair allegations as “crazy” and urged people not to “waste time on unfounded rumors” following Bill and Melinda’s explosive split.
She supposedly took to the Chinese site Weibo to issue a statement on the matter, writing: “I thought that the rumors would go away by themselves, but I did not expect the rumors to become more and more crazily spread.
“How many books can I read, so why spend time on the unfounded rumors?
“I would like to thank everyone for their concern and help in dispelling the rumors through private messages in the past 24 hours.”
She included a link to a story about the “#Gates divorce, some vicious people rumor to vilify an innocent Chinese girl.”
Wang’s LinkedIn profile appears to have been disabled.
According to PageSix, it stated that she Wang became a translator for the Monterey Institute of International Studies in September 2012.
In April 2013, she joined TED Conferences as an interpreter, translating events into Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Russian and Spanish.
Wang also worked at the Yale School of Management and Harvard Business School.
Meanwhile, a 1997 Time Magazine interview resurfaced revealing how Bill and his venture capitalist ex-girlfriend “broke up because he wasn’t ready to marry” and he asked for her approval to wed Melinda.
Bill, 65, and Ann Winblad, 70, dated in the eighties and broke up once he met Melinda in 1987 – but a report published in the late nineties indicated that their friendship continued.
A Time Magazine profile on Monday, Jan. 13, 1997, revealed that Bill was unsure about getting married, something he has addressed in subsequent interviews with Melinda.
In this article, he described calling Winblad to see what she thought about Bill making Melinda his wife.
“When I was off on my own thinking about marrying Melinda, I called Ann and asked for her approval,” he said, after it emerged that he’d made pros and cons lists before getting hitched.
In turn, Winblad said she approved of their match because Melinda “had intellectual stamina” before the former lovers confirmed Bill’s wife allowed their spring getaways to continue every year.
Bill continued his annual spring getaway with former flame at her beach house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina after he got married, according to Time.
At the time, the magazine noted that this yearly vacation had gone on for “more than a decade.”
A Time Magazine profile on Monday, Jan. 13, 1997, revealed that Bill was unsure about getting married, something he has addressed in subsequent interviews with Melinda.
In this article, he described calling Winblad to see what she thought about Bill making Melinda his wife after it emerged that he’d made pros and cons lists before getting hitched.
In turn, Winblad said she approved of their match because Melinda “had intellectual stamina” before the former lovers confirmed Bill’s wife allowed their spring getaways to continue every year.
Bill continued his annual spring getaway with former flame at her beach house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina after he got married, according to Time.
At the time, the magazine noted that this yearly vacation had gone on for “more than a decade.”
It isn’t clear how long or if these yearly trips continued after this interview.
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After Bill and Melinda posted identical Twitter statements, court documents obtained by The Sun revealed that they had a “separation contract” rather than a prenup, calling the $124billion Gates fortune into question.
In papers filed in Washington state, Gates’ estranged wife said their union was “irretrievably broken” and the court documents stated that they were “separated.”
The gargantuan Gates estate spans property in five states a private jet, an extensive art collection, and a fleet of luxury cars.