Gold medallist breaks down in tears over her late father's note
<p>An Olympic gold medallist has broken down in tears as she recalled an emotional and poignant exchange she had with her father before he died of cancer. </p>
<p>Lola Anderson claimed the gold medal for Team Great Britain in rowing, beating The Netherlands by just 0.15 seconds in the women’s quadruple sculls. </p>
<p>In her victory interview with the <em><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cnd06pg0k0wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BBC</a></em>, Lola recalled a note her father Don had given her months before his death in 2019.</p>
<p>Before his death, Lola's father asked her to retrieve a safety deposit box that contained an old diary entry that Lola wrote when she was just 14 years old. </p>
<p>In it, she wrote about becoming an Olympic rowing champion after seeing Helen Glover win gold at London 2012.</p>
<p>The note read: “My name is Lola Anderson and I think it would be my biggest dream in life to go to the Olympics and represent Team GB in rowing and, if possible, win a gold medal.”</p>
<p>Lola soon threw the note in the bin as she started to doubt her dream, but unbeknownst to her, her father fished it out of the garbage and kept it, giving it back to her before he died. </p>
<p>When asked about the note after the win, she told the <em>BBC</em>, “I’d forgotten about it obviously. A couple years ago my dad reminded me."</p>
<p>“I know he’d be so, so proud. I’m just thinking a lot about him right now, it’s really lovely.”</p>
<p>Speaking about the note to the <em><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jul/26/he-chose-to-believe-meet-lola-anderson-gb-rower-living-her-late-fathers-olympic-dream" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Guardian</a></em> before the Olympics, Anderson said her father, who introduced her to the sport, believed in her when she didn’t.</p>
<p>“I kinda thought that was a really cocky, arrogant thing to have written. Back then, on a good day I wasn’t capsizing. I ripped the page out and threw it in the bin,” she said. </p>
<p>“It reflects to me how much he cared, invested and believed in me and my siblings, even when we couldn’t see it. There was nothing to show I had any talent when I first started rowing but he kept the note and chose to believe.”</p>
<p><em>Image credits: BBC </em></p>
