Commonwealth diving champion Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix is delighted to finally step into her own spotlight, one shining nowhere near her famous father.
The 18-year-old Olympian experienced a breakthrough year in 2022, clinching two Commonwealth Games golds and a silver just weeks after picking up mixed team bronze at the World Aquatics Championships.
Yet most still recognise Spendolini-Sirieix by the second half of her surname, the part she shares with dad Fred Sirieix, the maitre d’ on Channel 4’s First Dates. That is beginning to change.
The teenager told the PA news agency: “It’s quite funny, I had an interaction with someone the other day. I was with my mum, and (a man) just stopped and just pointed at me and went, ‘Well done! Well done’.
“I didn’t know what to do. It feels a bit weird, because usually it’s my dad that’s recognised and I’m just there standing in the back. But to know that my name is out there, I’m not just someone’s daughter. I’m actually doing something on my own and my name is appearing… It…
