Mom’s the word for Olympic divers
Canada’s Fab IV all agree they are given extra strength by support from their mothers
MONTREAL — They’re known as the Fab IV, but they could also be called the Fab VIII.
Canadian divers Pamela Ware, Roseline Filion, Jennifer Abel and Meaghan Benfeito have their sights set on the Rio Olympics in August and all say they wouldn’t have made it there without the support of their mothers — Sandra Kovac (Ware), Helene Filion, Sylvie Danis (Abel) and Margie Correia (Benfeito).
When asked who her hero is, Ware didn’t hesitate to respond: “My mom.”
“She’s been through so much in her life when she was younger and she always got through it,” Ware said. “I’ve always looked up to her because she’s such a strong person. I always wanted to be like her.”
That doesn’t mean it’s been all roses in their relationship — as any mother and daughter can relate to.
“Even when I was younger, she was always there for me even though I wasn’t always easy,” said Ware, a 23-year-old Greenfield Park, Que., native. “I’m so thankful that she’s here with me because I would not be able to do this without her. She’s the first person I call after competing, good or bad. Everything I have a problem with, I complain to her about. She gets the good, the bad, everything from me. Without her, I wouldn’t be able to keep diving.”
Benfeito also admitted to some rocky moments in the relationship with her mom, but added: “I don’t think I would be the person I am today without her.”
“For me, she’s that one person I go to right away after a good or bad competition,” added Benfeito, a 27-year-old Montrealer. “She always knows what to say, even when it’s not good. She’s the one that’s always like, ‘It’s OK, don’t give up. Just smile, have fun.’ ”
The Fab IV and their mothers were together in a Montreal hotel suite last week to promote a P&G advertising campaign titled Thank You Mom — Strong, with the slogan: “It takes someone strong to make someone strong.”
That would also make a great line on a greeting card for Mother’s Day on Sunday.
As the divers and their mothers sat down with me to watch the commercial for about the ninth time for them on this day of media availability, Filion said to her mom: “Are you going to cry again?”
She did ... and the three other mothers were also dabbing at their eyes. This wasn’t acting.
When asked what part of the advertisement reminded her most of the relationship with her daughter, Helene Filion said: “Every moment. The beginning to the end … it’s her and me.”
The commercial will pull at the heartstrings of any mother with a daughter — whether they play sports or not — and has already been viewed more than 10 million times on YouTube.
While they have different mothers, the Fab IV are basically sisters, spending six hours a day, five days a week training together at the Olympic Stadium pool. The mothers are also friends, keeping in touch on the phone and going out for dinners together.
“I spend more time with them than my actual sisters,” said Benfeito, whose younger twin sisters, Alicia and Chelsea, came up with the Fab IV moniker, using the first initials of Filion, Abel and Benfeito and adding Ware as the IV.
The Fab IV have travelled the world together for years to compete in international competitions. Abel won a bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics along with Emilie Heymans in three-metre synchro, while Benfeito and Filion won bronze in 10-metre synchro. All four divers have medal hopes for Rio.
There’s something so refreshing about Olympic athletes, who really do compete for the love of their sport with little financial reward and not a lot of media exposure — until they step on the Olympic stage every four years and the spotlight gets very bright. The mothers know how much their daughters sacrifice — from friends to school to a social life — to get there. It’s fun to watch the Fab IV interact together, poking fun at each other and finishing each other’s sentences while smiling and laughing.
“I think all these girls have determination,” Ware’s mother said. “I’m proud of her determination and never giving up when things don’t go well. And she does it with a smile, so beautifully.”
Filion, the veteran of the group at 28, has had to rely on her mother more than usual this year after breaking her right foot during a December training session in Saskatoon, two days before the start of the national championships. Helene moved in with her daughter to look after her and drive her to medical appointments.
“She has made so many sacrifices to help me,” said Filion, who is from Laval, Que. “It made me wonder what’s happening if you don’t have a mom with you to help you? If I was doing it alone, I would have quit a long time ago.
“I needed my mother to go through all of this to help me become who I am today as an athlete and a woman.”
When the Fab IV mothers were asked what advice they have for other moms whose young daughters might have Olympic dreams, Ware’s mother said: “Don’t push them, just encourage them. They push themselves enough.”
Added Filion’s mother: “Just be there for them.”
Fabulous.