Controversial South African / British athlete who competed at the 1984 Olympics (4)

I believe the answer is:

zola

(Other definitions for zola that I've seen before include "Emile -, Fr. novelist" , "Emile --, French writer" , "French author of Germinal" , "See 2" , "French author (Nana)" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

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