Tom Daley has retired from diving following his silver medal at the Paris Olympics.
Daley and diving partner Noah Williams produced six brilliant dives in the men’s synchro 10m platform diving final to finish in second place in Paris on July 29.
The 30-year-old was competing at a fifth Olympic Games after returning from a two-year break from diving after he won gold during the delayed 2021 Tokyo Games.
Daley’s husband Dustin Lance Black and sons, Robbie and Phoenix, were in attendance in Paris, with Daley having said that being able to dive in front of them at an Olympics was a factor in his decision to return.
“It feels very, very surreal,” Daley said in an interview with Vogue.
“I felt so incredibly nervous going into this, knowing it was my last Olympics. There was a lot of pressure and expectation. I was eager for it to be done… but when I walked out, and saw my husband and kids and my friends and family in the audience, I was like, you know what? This is exactly why I did this.
“I’m here, and no matter what happens in the competition itself, I’m going to be happy.
“It was emotional at the end, up there on the platform, knowing it was going to be my last competitive dive.
“But I have to make the decision at some point, and it feels like the right time. It’s the right time to call it a day.”
Daley’s silver in Paris was his fifth Olympic medal and saw him complete the set, as he secured three bronze medals across his home games in London 2012, Rio 2016 and in the 10m platform at Tokyo to go with his synchro gold.
He made his Olympic debut in Beijing in 2008 as a 14-year-old.
Daley has ‘nothing left to prove’
Daley retires as Team GB’s most decorated diver in Olympic history having participated in five Games.
“I think it was expected in the sense that it was five Olympics for Tom Daley and he has done everything he wanted to achieve,” said Sky Sports’ senior reporter Geraint Hughes.
“He wanted to come back and win a medal for his son and that’s exactly what he did. It wasn’t the gold but it was the silver.
“He won gold in Tokyo. He’s got nothing to prove to anyone. Five Olympic Games, his first in Beijing in 2008 when he was 14-years-old and he’s only 30 now, which is young.
“I spoke to Tom just before his competition out in Paris and I had mentioned the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games and the lure of LA because he lives in America with his husband and family out there.
“It kind of felt a natural fit to go for the sixth gig but judging by how I saw Tom getting on the train this morning, let’s just put it this way, he looked tired.
“He had a poker face and didn’t give anything away that he was making this decision. A very well shielded PR campaign from his people to release that.
“He has been a terrific sergeant for Team GB, terrific sergeant for the diving team as well.”