Diving star Tom Daley to make record fifth Olympic appearance at Paris 2024
Tom Daley will become the first British diver to appear at five Olympic Games after he and Noah Williams were named for the 10m platform synchro, the event in which Daley triumphed at Tokyo 2020.
Eight divers were confirmed by the British Olympic Association on Tuesday to represent Team GB at Paris 2024 in the four synchronised diving events. Daley had quit the sport after winning his first Olympic gold with Matty Lee in Tokyo, but came out of retirement last July after his son told him he wanted to see him compete at the Olympics.
Daley and Williams took silver at February’s World Aquatics Championships in Doha with China’s Lian Junjie and Yang Hao almost 50 points clear in first. Lee – who won Commonwealth Games gold with Williams two years ago – was ruled out of the Paris Games following surgery on his spine in March.
The result is that Daley will have had a new synchro partner at each of his five Games. The 29-year-old previously paired up with Blake Aldridge at Beijing 2008 and Peter Waterfield at London 2012, before winning bronze at Rio 2016 with Daniel Goodfellow.
Rio 3m springboard synchro gold medallist Jack Laugher has also been named to the squad with Olympic debutant Anthony Harding – after world silver medals in 2022 and 2023 – his partner in Paris. This will be Laugher’s fourth Games since making his debut at London 2012. He said, “It’s been a long time. It’s not what I thought was going to happen when I was a kid, but I’m so glad I’m here!
“It’s a massive testament to myself but also the people I have around me, the teams, the people who work hard to keep me in shape, my coaches and everyone to get me in the best quality I can be in to go to another Olympic Games – and hopefully hit hard.”
Lois Toulson will go to a third Olympics as she teams up with Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix in the women’s 10m platform synchro. The pair won bronze at February’s World Championships in Doha after taking silver at the Fukuoka 2023 Worlds.
Yasmin Harper and Scarlett Mew Jensen achieved the same placings at the last two World Championships in the 3m springboard synchro. Like Harding, Harper will make her Games debut in Paris.
8️⃣ divers confirmed ✅
Paris, we’re coming…👀🔥🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/h8zmVnog85
— Aquatics GB (@Aquatics_GB) May 7, 2024
Team GB Chef de Mission Mark England commented, “Congratulations to the first eight divers selected to Team GB for Paris 2024. All four pairs have proven that they can challenge for podium places on the world stage, and it is fantastic to see the calibre of diving athletes getting stronger and stronger with each Games.
“There is also a fantastic mix of youth and experience within the squad, and I am delighted to welcome Olympic champions Jack and Tom back to Team GB for a fourth and fifth Games respectively. Congratulations to Tom in particular who becomes the first British diver to compete at five Olympic Games, a remarkable achievement.”