The Plymouth native became an overnight celebrity at home, but also started getting bullied at school.
A move to a sports-focussed college followed, which paid dividends when he landed a shock 10m platform gold at the World Championships. The victory intensified the media spotlight on Daley, who was to become the posterboy for Team GB at the London Olympics.
But just days before his 17th birthday, his preparations for those home Games were dealt a devastating blow when his father suddenly died from a brain tumor in May In the end, the diver was able to win his first Olympic medal in London - a 10m platform bronze - which was a significant achievement considering the pressure of the occasion and the emotional rollercoaster he had been on a year previously.
In , he released a video announcing that he was in a relationship with a man. Speaking out about his private life put him on the front page of newspapers, inspiring many with his story.
In he announced his engagement. Despite the enormous distraction that followed the diver at an Olympics once again, Daley was able to win the 10m synchro bronze medal alongside Dan Goodfellow at Rio That momentum led to another fantastic performance at the World Championships, where Daley won the 10m platform gold. But years of relentless competition had taken their toll on his mind and body.
In , Daley decided to take a break from the sport in order to recover from several injuries and many wondered if the British diving golden child would ever return. During his break, Daley also became a father, and this proved to be the spark that brought him back to the top of sport for Tokyo.
Rather than wanting to complete his medal collection, he just wanted to make his son proud. Earlier, second place in the mixed 3m springboard saw Daley and year-old Reid add to the European gold they won together in London last year. Eight years, virtually to the day, since year-old Tom Daley won the World Championship final in Rome, he is back on the top of the podium with an improved score from the He needed a big last dive and pulled it off with a second three-figure score.
The dive list of the year-old - the only survivor from the final of that outdoor event in Italy in - is very different to eight years ago, but the start was not. Four scores of over 90 in the first four rounds, including nailing the armstand that had caused him problems in the semi-final - and then the plus score on the forward four and a half somersaults, signalled his desire to banish the memory of missing the Olympic final in Rio which followed record-breaking preliminaries. Matty Lee wasn't quite able to match the standards he reached in the semi-final - but many more experienced divers were not able to reach the final 12 at all and he will be one to watch at the European Championships in Scotland in just over a year from now.
How to get into diving - have a go and make a splash from heights of up to 10m and beyond. Chen finished second with Asked if it was bitter sweet, Daley did not wish to dwell on Rio.
Daley, the London bronze medallist, was third in the world in Kazan two years ago. He was unable to explain his Olympic exit but vowed to go for gold again in Tokyo. Budapest was a good start. Daley and Grace Reid earlier claimed silver in the mixed synchronised 3m springboard, singing and dancing in the shower between dives. That approach worked for Daley, who decided to keep singing in his individual final.
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