24 June 2024 , 05:00
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Diving star Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix has already earmarked a career in journalism when she stops competing.
And the 19-year-old, who will begin university in September irrespective of what happens in Paris, says her central motivation is to be able to tell the stories of people who are often forgotten by the media.
Already a keen photographer, Spendolini-Sirieix is annoyed by how the news pages are dominated by the same few faces every day when inspirational figures, particularly in sports other than football, remain in the shadows.
“I have met so many people that, unfortunately, journalists haven't given them the time of day because perhaps they weren't famous enough or they didn't get as many medals,” she says.
“I want to be the person that's going to people that that you journalists wouldn't go to. I see the inside of everyone. I don't just see the people that are on the front pages and the people that are in everyone's mouths.
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“I see the people that are working so hard behind the scenes and for whom it hasn't paid off yet but it will. I want to use my platform and journalism as a way to boost them up.”
She is especially annoyed that, in an era when football dominates every single week, many Olympic stars are only talked about once every four years.
Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix has reignited her passion for the sport.“I understand why that happens because it’s about what sells newspapers but we compete every year, just like footballers compete every year,” she adds. “I know it all depends on the audience and it all depends on how we are promoting sports and how we are promoting athletes as well. But it does frustrate me.”
Fighting to become known as not just the teenager of TV’s most famous maitre d’ - Fred of First Dates - has been part of that battle.
“I know that at the beginning I was only someone's daughter,” she says. “I wasn't Andrea, I was someone’s daughter. Only now am I being recognised by my own name. And I know how frustrating it is when it's like that.”