Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix reveals ‘I didn’t want to be alive’ in heartbreaking confession | Other | Sport

Andrea Spendolini-Sireix has admitted she did not want to be alive after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The 19-year-old diver has been open about her mental health battle since those Covid-impacted Games three years ago.

Spendolini-Sirieix finished seventh in the final of the 10m platform aged only 16 at the last edition of the Olympics. Afterwards, her relationship with her sport faltered and she considered quitting.

Three years on, Spendolini-Sirieix finished sixth in the same event on Tuesday with a score of 345.50. In lieu of a medal, there was personal pride in her journey, insisting she is simply pleased to be alive and breathing.

In an emotional interview with the BBC, the Team GB star said: “As you say, it wasn’t meant to be. I’m not trying to be macho or anything and I’m not upset with my performance.

“Three years ago, I didn’t want to be alive, so today I’m just happy that I’m alive, I’m breathing, and I’ve got my family to support me.”

Asked about her performance, she added: “Obviously it wasn’t the result that I wanted. I’m not even upset with the competition. The girls, they were amazing. They were better than me today. It’s because they work really hard.”

Spendolini-Sirieix, who is the daughter of TV’s Fred Sirieix, spoke earlier this week about struggling to enjoy her sport in the aftermath of the Tokyo Olympics. She changed coaches in a bid to recover her relationship with diving and has benefitted from some adaptations.

The London-born star won bronze with partner Lois Toulson in the 10m synchronised diving last week.

“I was struggling a lot mentally. I just wasn’t doing well,” she reflected of the period after returning from Tokyo. “Going to Tokyo, I felt very alone, very isolated and I was missing my family. I had just finished my GCSEs and it was just very, very stressful. It just felt very overwhelming.

“When I was out there I was not enjoying anything – not the diving aspect and there was no socialising so it was even harder. After Tokyo, I didn’t take very much time off and so when I came back to training, I didn’t feel like I’d rested mentally from it.

“I made the decision to change coach because it was either I changed my scenery or I quit completely. I thought about quitting. I spoke so much about hating the sport. But I couldn’t get myself to actually quit. So I started to rebuild my relationship with diving.”

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