Tokyo 2020: Tom Daley selected by Team GB as he aims for first Olympic gold
- Published
Tom Daley will look to finally complete his set of major diving medals with an Olympic gold this summer after being selected for the Tokyo Games.
Daley, 27, has won world, European and Commonwealth titles, as well as bronze medals at London 2012 and Rio 2016.
He is part of a 12-strong GB team which also includes defending Olympic champion Jack Laugher and fellow Rio medallist Dan Goodfellow.
16-year-old Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix is the youngest member of the squad.
The teenager was the winner of the Young Sports Personality of the Year award in 2020 and has been rewarded for impressive performances at the Diving World Cup as well as the European Championships, where she claimed an impressive bronze last month.
Daley, who suffered a shock semi-final elimination in the individual 10m platform event at Rio 2016, will compete in both the individual competition as well as the synchronised discipline.
Tokyo 2020 will be his fourth Olympics, which will tie the three-time world champion with current record holder Pete Waterfield who competed at Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
With Daley's previous 10m partner Goodfellow having now joined Laugher in the synchronised 3m competition, Daley will line-up alongside Matty Lee in Japan.
European silver medallists Lois Toulson and Eden Cheng will lead GB's medal bid in the women's synchronised 10m platform event, with Grace Reid and Kat Torrance teaming up in the synchronised 3m discipline.
Scottish Commonwealth bronze medallist James Heatly will follow his late grandfather in becoming an Olympic diver, 69 years after Sir Peter Heatly competed for Britain at the 1952 Helsinki Games.
English Commonwealth silver medallist Noah Williams and four-time British champion Scarlett Mew Jensen will also make their Olympic debuts in Tokyo.
"This has been the longest Olympic cycle ever, but our team exceeded all my expectation in terms of coping with all the challenges we experienced during the pandemic," said British Diving performance director Alexei Evangulov.
"Despite the challenges they have significantly improved their diving quality, which has allowed us to come up to the homestretch to Tokyo with a great confidence, high ambitions and belief."
Great Britain diving team for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games:
Eden Cheng, London, Crystal Palace Diving
Thomas Daley, Plymouth, Dive London
Daniel Goodfellow, Cambridge, City of Leeds
James Heatly, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Diving Club
Jack Laugher, Harrogate, City of Leeds
Matty Lee, Leeds, Dive London
Scarlett Mew Jensen, London, Dive London
Grace Reid, Edinburgh, Dive London
Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix, London, Crystal Palace Diving
Katherine Torrance, Leeds, City of Leeds
Lois Toulson, Leeds, City of Leeds
Noah Williams, London, Dive London