Record-breaking Team GB diver Tom Daley has paid tribute to his family and his late father as his latest medal success – and given a hint about whether he will compete in one more Olympics.
Daley, who won silver at Paris 2024 to take his medal tally to five, spoke of son Robbie getting to see him compete for the first time at an Olympics – Daley’s fifth.
He also reminisced fondly of his inspirational father Robert, who died a year before Daley won his first Olympic medal as an 18-year-old at London 2012.
He was bronze in the 10m platform event that summer, before clinching bronzes at both Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 as well as synchronised 10m platform gold in Japan.
Daley, also known for his knitting while watching fellow competitors at poolside, won silver at Paris 2024 on Monday with partner Noah Williams.
Five-time Olympic medallist Tom Daley has been speaking about whether he could take part in the next Summer Games scheduled for Los Angeles in 2028
He was interviewed today on ITV by Good Morning Britain’s Sian Gibson and Craig Doyle
Tom Daley paid tribute to his late father Robert, who died of a brain tumour in 2011
The presenting pair talked to Daley, 30, after he won silver at Paris 2024 earlier this week
He was teased today on TV by ITV‘s Good Morning Britain presenter Craig Doyle, who told the diver: ‘You look tired.’
Daley joked, ‘Oh, thanks!’, before opening up in his emotions following his latest Team GB glory.
He said: ‘It’s nice my kids will be able to look back and see all the things I did. It has been great to come back.
‘Will I get to do another one? I went to Paris because Robbie wanted to see his dad at the Olympics.
‘He said, “I want to see you dive”. I thought I was done after Tokyo but when I decided to go again my husband was so supportive of it. It’s hard when two parents are working and also training for the Olympics.’
Daley also recalled his father Robert, who died of a brain tumour in 2011 aged 40.
Tom, from Plymouth, said: ‘My dad was my biggest cheerleader.’
When asked whether he might compete in a sixth Olympics, with the next one due to be staged in Los Angeles in 2018, he said today: ‘We’ll see,. I’ll be 34 then, I don’t know if I’ll be able to get out of bed then!
‘I thought I was done after the last one and here I am, so… Robbie has already cashed in his token, so maybe Phoenix will want to cash in a token – who knows?’
Daley made his Olympics debut aged just 14 at Beijing 2008, also becoming the youngest diver to reach a final – though had to wait four years for his first meal, that bronze at London 2012.
The Olympic diver, who has been competing at his fifth Olympiad in Paris, told how he thinks about his father ‘every day’ after he passed when he was just 17
His father Robbie died aged 40 in 2011 following a long five year battle with brain cancer
Tom got stuck into some knitting as he watched the Women’s Synchronised 3m Springboard Final at the Aquatics Centre on the first day of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games on Saturday
He finally won gold at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo 2020 Summer Games held in 2021, alongside Matty Lee in the synchronised 10m platform event.
Daley wept on the podium and told interviewers afterwards: ‘I was gone, I was blubbering. To finally have this around my neck – I’ve been diving over 20 years.’
And after his latest feat, Daley said earlier this week: ‘This year has felt like a bonus really – 19 months ago, I was sitting on my sofa doing nothing, and deciding to come back because my son – he wanted to see me at the Olympics.
‘And now to be here with a silver medal, to be diving with Noah and, you know, to be diving in front of my family, it was really special.’
He described today how son Robbie inspired him to take on Paris 2024, saying: ‘We went to a museum and at the end there was this inspirational video about what it means to be an Olympian and at the end I was crying.
‘My husband turned to be and said, “Oh, no, I know what this means”, and Robbie was like, “What’s the matter, Pappa?”
‘I explained that I missed diving and I miss the sport and after taking two years away from it, he said, “Well, Pappa, I want to see you dive at the Olympics”, and that was it.
‘The family and supporters really are the unsung heroes of Olympians and give you everything you need to help you perform at your best.’
Daley was yesterday seen supporting Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix and Lois Toulson as they took bronze in the women’s event.
On Saturday, he was filmed knitting cardigans as he gave his support to Yasmin Harper and Scarlett Mew as they secured a bronze in the women’s synchronized 3m springboard.
Daley regularly knitted while poolside at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics as he watched his team-mate Jack Laugher secure a bronze medal.
Tom Daley ‘s husband Dustin Lance Black, 50, took to Instagram with a series of family snaps as they celebrated the diver’s Olympic win in Paris on Monday
Daley beamed while showing off his medal and cuddled up to his youngest son, before eldest Robbie could be seen proudly draped in a Union Jack flag
In another snap Oscar winner Dustin, 50, chocked back tears following his husband’s silver
Daley was seen checking his knitting while watching the women’s diving events yesterday
Daley was supporting British team-mates Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix and Lois Toulson
Daley has showcased his knitting skills regularly, showing off several pieces such as a cream garment, adorned with the Team GB logo in 2021.
Daley has previously spoken about the cathartic effect knitting has on his mindset during competitions, after setting up an Instagram page showing his fits called Made With Love By Tom Daley.
He said: ‘When we went to Japan for the test event I actually took my knitting with me and was doing it during my competition because sometimes there’s 45 minutes in between each dive so I’d sit there and knit and just take my mind off the competition completely. I’m obsessed!’
His film-maker husband Dustin Lance Black followed up this week’s silver medal achievement by sharing on Intagram a series of family photos.
They had dressed their sons Robbie, six, and 16-month-old Phoenix in T-shirts that read ‘That’s My Papa’.
Daley beamed while showing off his medal on the podium and cuddled up to his youngest son, while eldest Robbie was draped in a Union Jack flag.
In another snap Oscar winner Dustin, 50, was seen choking back tears – captioning the post: ‘Spectacularly special day.’