Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix: Happiness the key to success as 2023 World Aquatic Championships beckon

A year on from her golden breakthrough British diver Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix is fully back in the rhythm of things.

Last year, months before an impressive string of results that included gold medals at the 2022 European and Commonwealth Games, the 10m platform diver nearly gave up her sport altogether revealing to Olympics.com that a spate of the ‘twisties’, exacerbated at Tokyo 2020, left her with a “mental block” she thought she might never overcome.

Thanks to her close support network the diver was able to push through and her tenacity was ultimately rewarded when she capped her sensational 2022 season with a gold at the World Junior Diving Championships in Montreal.

Now, a year on, the Brit has harnessed the good from last year and is feeling stronger than ever before.

“Last year was really lovely," Spendolini-Sirieix said to Sportsbeat for Team GB about her year of growth.

“It was so nice to find that confidence again especially after feeling knocked down. I’m using what I learned and applying that into this year, and I think the most important thing is enjoying what I do every time. Realising that sometimes it’s not always going to be OK and that’s completely fine. Having that communication with your coach, some days you’ll have bad days and others will be really good."

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“I used to want to do everything by myself and didn’t want to put my burdens on other people," the diver continued. "But they are there for a reason and they can’t help you unless you go to them.”

One of the 'burdens' that had been weighing down on Spendolini-Sirieix around the time of her mental block came from her A-Levels - two-year-long qualifications that are often used as means of getting into university for British students.

Already fluent in Italian through her mother, and French through her celebrity father Fred Sirieix, the diver chose to study Spanish, History and English Literature, creating a jam-packed schedule.

With final exams now behind her, Spendolini-Sirieix is free to focus entirely on sport for the upcoming year. This is another reason why she is feeling much more liberated.

“I've been training again after exams. It's become more evident that I missed diving a lot, so it’s nice to come back and realise that I really love what I do," she said. "It's felt so good to be focused on one thing and not 50 different things at once."

Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix ready for action at 2023 World Aquatic Championships in Fukuoka

A happy Spendolini-Sirieix can only mean good things for British diving aspirations.

Having made her Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020 at the age of 16, the young diver has become a firm favourite with the British public who hold the sport in high regard thanks to continued success in the discipline spearheaded by the legendary Tom Daley.

Now the focus for Spendolini-Sirieix will be maintaining that peace going into the Fukuoka 2023 World Aquatics Championships where she is set to compete in the women’s 10m platform.

The championships serve as a qualifier for Paris 2024 with the 12 highest-placed athletes in each event securing one quota for their National Olympic Committee (NOC).

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Although Spendolini-Sirieix will aim to do her best, the Brit, who has spoken about having a special bond with next year's Games through her French father, is keeping herself firmly away from any kind of pressure.

“We've done a good chunk of training, we have a strategy plan and everything's in place so I’m looking forward to getting back on 10 metres," Spendolini-Sirieix explained to Team GB.

"I know what I need to do and what the goal is. I want to beat myself. If I get a medal, that’s incredible, but I want to go there and beat my personal best. I also just want to enjoy the progress. I’m not going to stress or put pressure on myself.

"I’ve learned from last year going to Worlds, do not put pressure on yourself as it does bad things to you. I know I work best when I’m enjoying myself and when I’m giving my all.”

Spendolini-Sirieix will begin her campaign at the Fukuoka 2023 World Aquatics Championships on Tuesday 18 July at 10:00 (GMT+9) with the women’s 10m platform preliminary event.

Prelims will be followed by a semi-final later in the day with the final penned for 19 July at 18:00 (local time).