Tom Daley pays tribute to his late father after winning diving bronze
- Published
Tom Daley dedicated his Olympic medal to his father after winning bronze in the men's 10m platform final.
Daley's dad, Rob, lost his battle with cancer last year.
"I know that if he was here he would be very proud," said the 18-year-old, who is Britain's first individual diving medallist for 52 years.
"It's really tough not having him here, but I'm so glad to come out with something to show for it after all of the hard work we put in together."
The Devon-born teenager revealed that former England football captain David Beckham also played a key role in his success at London 2012.
Daley missed out on a medal when he competed in the synchronised 10m platform event with Peter Waterfield earlier in the Games and said Beckham had helped him deal with the disappointment.
"He wanted to wish me well and to say keep your chin up," said Daley, who said he had corresponded with Beckham via text.
"David was asking how I've been feeling, giving me advice about what to take out of the synchro. He was kind of asking me the right questions, telling me it's not that bad and that I can come back."
The diver also thanked GB performance director Alexei Evangulov for the harsh words of advice he had given him earlier in the year.
The Russian said Daley was in danger of wasting his talent if he did not focus less on his media commitments and more on training.
Evangulov also urged Daley to lose weight to aid his performance.
"I've slimmed down quite a bit after Alexei's recommendation that I was getting a bit sluggish," said Daley.
"Since December, I've lost around 8kg, which is quite a lot. However, now I can't wait to eat what I want and drink what I want!"
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