Burgess Hill mother and daughter javelin duo reflect on the last year

As part of the work we're doing today to mark this, we talked with Burgess Hill mum and Olympic champion powerlifter who we wrote about last year.

Aneela Rose and her daughter, Gabby Rose, found new and innovative ways of doing javelin training at the start of the first lockdown, and captured the attention of Olympian javelin thrower Tessa Sanderson.

Gabby Rose, 7, said: “It’s been hard because I haven’t seen my friends and I’ve felt lonely.

"School work has been hard to do without my teachers.

"I don’t like coronavirus!”

Aneela works as managing director of her business, Rose Media Group, which is a PR and marketing company dedicated to working with companies mainly within the technical space.

Aneela said: “I clearly remember walking out of my office a year ago and telling my staff that I’ll see them in a few months!

"We didn’t know what to expect during that first lockdown - there was no expectation from anyone as it was a new situation, almost novel.

"Homeschooling wasn’t expected, not as much pressure to juggle work and kids as we assumed it was only for a short time.

"This third lockdown has been so much harder.

"It’s the expectation that’s different this time around.

"We’re all expected to cope better because we’ve been through it before.

"The fact is we’re exhausted, mentally, emotionally and physically.

"But, I’ve managed to keep my business afloat, I’ve not made any redundancies and I’ve stayed sane.

"We’ve actually won new business, recruited new staff and renewed our office lease.

"I’ve got to remain optimistic and hopeful."