By Mathieu Wood
Sport pales into insignificance after tragedy, especially when it hits your hometown.
Yet through the unifying power of the Olympic Games, Tommy Fleetwood hopes to bring solace to a community grieving following an awful knife attack in Southport, England.
Three children died and eight other children were injured in the attack at a Taylor-Swift themed event on Monday.
“I am pretty sure that (winning a medal) will make no difference to anybody but I hope it can bring some happiness, something back, to the town," said Fleetwood at Le Golf National.
“Gold medal or not, I am sure we will work to help the families affected, bring everyone together and restore the town.
In the immediate aftermath of the news breaking, Fleetwood released a heartfelt message on social media in which he said he was “absolutely heartbroken”.
“My thoughts are with the families of the children who were tragically killed and injured,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“What they are going through is unimaginable. As a parent myself it’s difficult to even comprehend what has happened and what they have ahead of them, but I know the whole community in Southport will come together to support them.
“My heart will always be in Southport and together with my family we are sending all of our love to the people of my hometown.”
I am absolutely heartbroken at the news coming out of Southport today. My thoughts are with the families of the children who were tragically killed and injured. What they are going through is unimaginable. As a parent myself it’s difficult to even comprehend what has happened and…
— Tommy Fleetwood (@TommyFleetwood1) July 29, 2024
While he is Dubai based, Fleetwood still has close ties to Southport with a number of relatives living in the area.
He heard of the news through his putting coach Phil Kenyon, who lives in the town, shortly after arriving in France.
“You don't quite process it really for a little while and then more new starts coming out about it,” he said.
“It is tragic for the town, but for the people affected it is terrible.”
Fleetwood is a firm fan favourite worldwide, but especially so in his hometown, evident when huge crowds turned out to support him in last year’s Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
The 33-year-old has offered his support to several charitable endeavours over the years, and Fleetwood admits the events in Merseyside have brought increased determination to challenge for a medal at Le Golf National.
Much is hoped for from Fleetwood on his second outing at an Olympics, three years on from his debut in Tokyo.
Then, he was aiming to become the second player to win gold for Great Britain, but despite being in medal contention going into the final round he eventually settled for a tie for 16th.
It was an experience that has only fuelled his hunger to do better this time around.
“It's pretty extreme. Being at the last one in Tokyo, one of the biggest things I took away, and it's obvious, but these guys, they train for four years; a false start on a hundred meters, and your opportunity, you have to wait another four years. So it puts a bad tee shot on the first in a perspective a little bit,” he said.
“Having done one, you have a little bit of experience what it was like.
“It's very different for us. We spend week-in and week-out every year with the same people and people that do the same job as you, and being surrounded by the best athletes in the world is something that's different for us.
“I enjoyed that at the last one and I think it's great, and I think it's kind of an honour to be around people, if you like, that give their lives to their sports.”
I feel very lucky to be here and be amongst it. It inspires me for sure
In a pre-tournament press conference on the eve of the tournament, Fleetwood spoke of his delight at seeing close friend and fellow Team GB athlete James Guy defend gold in the men’s 4x200m freestyle swimming.
“So proud and happy for him, knowing the work they put into it to achieve that,” he explained, revealing Guy had sent him a message with a picture of him with his gold medal last night.
“You can't help but be inspired and motivated by that. I think the Olympics is amazing, I really do.
“I feel very lucky to be here and be amongst it. It inspires me for sure.”
Fleetwood, who is joined by fellow Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick in representing Team GB, tees it up alongside major winners Wyndham Clark and Hideki Matsuyama over the first two rounds.
And he does so at a venue which holds fond memories.
Back in 2017, Fleetwood won the Open de France, before returning to the same venue to great acclaim as he starred alongside Francesco Molinari to help Team Europe regain the Ryder Cup.
While there have been occasions when performances haven’t been quite so strong, Fleetwood is happy to be back at the venue for the first time since those scenes of joy on the Albatros course six years ago.
“For us that grew up on the European Tour, (now the DP World Tour), it's obviously been a staple part of our golfing life, if you like,” he reflected.
“We've come back here every year pretty much. I haven't been here for a while, but it's always been historical on the Tour.
“The course doesn't change; so it's nice to get back out there. You have memories of each and every hole that you've played, and it is, it's always nice coming back to somewhere that you know relatively well and just getting used to it again.”
