James Haskell has shared an unexpectedly emotional moment with his young daughter, admitting it made him reflect on the huge responsibility of parenthood. The former rugby star opened up on the No Parental Guidance podcast when asked about a parenting fail, telling a story about a small mistake that turned into a profound experience.
Argument over custody time
Haskell, who shares daughter Bodhi with ex-wife Chloe Madeley, said the pair had argued about how much time each spends with their child. He explained: "I am a single parent. I worked it out, Chloe and I argued about it. I still have her 50% of the time essentially but I think she boiled it down to 38.9% of the time or something like that."
Swimming lesson mishap
He recalled taking Bodhi to her first swimming lesson, admitting he had booked it himself but arrived without essentials. "I realised that, you needed a swimming hat, goggles, I hadn't brought any of the things that I was supposed to bring," he said. He bought what was needed at the venue, but the experience made him think about how much he was still learning as a father.
Haskell joked other parents may have been more prepared, then described helping Bodhi get ready, which suddenly took on deeper meaning. "This little child has infinite trust in me. She doesn't know what she's doing. I'm here trying to put her hair in it," he said.
Overcome by emotion
As he arranged her hair under the swimming hat and helped with goggles she had never worn, Haskell said he felt overwhelmed by the responsibility. "I'm taking my daughter to a swimming lesson. I can't believe the responsibility and I don't really know what I'm doing," he explained.
He admitted becoming emotional as Bodhi was led away. "I welled up a bit, and then she got led away into the thing, and I was just confronted with all these emotions," he recalled. Watching through a window, she waved before getting on with the lesson.
Haskell described the moment as powerful despite the initial mistake. "It was just one of those really nice moments. It was a nice moment but also a stark contrast of the trust and responsibility I have, and I have no idea what I'm doing," he said.
