Fred Sirieix

Dear Fred,

I don’t know you, and you don’t know me but I wanted to drop you a quick note to say a huge thank you for the way that you spoke and carried yourself at the Olympics. I know that as a celebrity, you’ll be familiar with how things can be represented, and I guess you might also be used to being guarded in certain situations because of the way things might be reported or commented on by the cruel world of social media. I can therefore only imagine that watching your daughter (who did an amazing job) and having to have an intimate and precious moment played out in front of the media could have been an extremely difficult moment. 

Thank you for wearing your heat on your sleeve and giving us one of the most previous moments of the Olympics. I’m in awe of anyone that can perform a the Olympics, and I love watching the diving. Watching Andrea diving really was inspiring even to the most casual of observer. Having read a bit more into her story since, and although I know you have to take much reporting with a pinch of salt,  I can therefore also imagine that watching her perform and not achieving the medal that she must have had in her mind could have been a really worrying moment. You must have had her mental health in mind, and also your emotions more than anyone would have been involved in everything that had gone before.

What a great message then to the world that you are so proud of your girl. I’m proud of her, so proud.. and I don’t know her! I’m proud because I can understand the love and emotion of a parent when they see their child performing at such an amazing level, and when they speak so powerfully and eloquently about their past struggles. 

What you did was amazing. Firstly, you showed your love and support in the most powerful way, with a hug. That hug crosses language barriers and says so much more than all the words, but makes them even more powerful. Then you gave a simple message that Andrea did brilliant, and she did. But also you put it into context. Yes, brilliant on that day was not quite enough to medal but brilliance is not only measured in medals and personal glory, it’s measured in other things.

How powerful that you were able to directly show, in that moment, the messages of support and thanks for the inspiration that Andrea’s performance, character and diving had had on people. 

I get a strong sense in the things that I’ve read that you are a super supportive family and a super supportive man. Both you and your daughter are in the spotlight, but you carry yourself in a way that inspires others. 

Thank you for being an inspiration, and for wearing your hearts on your sleeve despite the risk.