Plymouth diver Tom Daley is one step closer to competing at a fifth Olympic games after he and Noah Williams won silver in the men’s 10-metre synchro at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha. It secures Team GB a place in the event at the Paris Olympics this summer – with the duo in line to claim the spot.
Daley this week was competing on the international stage for the first time since August 2021 and was part of the British quartet that won world gold in the team event on Friday – his fourth world title, 15 years after his first. The 29-year-old said he was “terrified” before the event but was in fine form as he and Williams took silver with a score of 422.37.
China’s Lian Junjie and Yang Hao took gold in the event, while Oleksii Sereda and Kirill Boliukh of Ukraine finished third. Daley and Williams’ silver medal also set a new British diving record, becoming Britain’s seventh of the championships, beating a previous best of six earned in Budapest in 2022 and Daley insisted that the “real work” starts now in the build-up to Paris.
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“I was terrified when I woke up this morning, terrified eating breakfast, and at lunch!” Daley said. “But once I got into the competition, and being with Noah, I kind of relaxed and was like, ‘ah, this is what it feels like’.
“We knew that we had to try to qualify for a spot at the Olympics, which we succeeded in – but I think we went into it more fighting for the medals rather than thinking about the spots.
“Today was what it all came down to, whether I was going to be able to be fit enough to dive with Noah in the first place, and then be able to actually come in the top qualifying spots. That’s mission accomplished so far, and now it’s about staying fit and healthy to get to the start line (in Paris), so now the real work starts.”
Four spots at Paris were available for the best non-qualified nations prior to the championships. A top four finish was needed to guarantee the spot, but Daley and Williams did what was needed and stood up to the pressure by winning Silver to ensure Team GB will have a pair in the event in the summer.
For Williams, it was a second silver World Championship men’s 10m synchro medal having earned his first in 2022 at Budapest and he hopes to push for gold alongside Daley.
He said: “We came into today’s competition just trying to get an Olympic spot, and we did that and got a medal as well, so we’re very happy with the performance. We obviously haven’t trained too much together, but I think it has come pretty naturally to both of us.
“Tom said about seeing if he’s fit enough to dive with me, it’s definitely the other way around! I just try to do my best next to him, he’s obviously a great diver, so the better I dive, we’ll hopefully be able to be pushing for gold.”
The final selection for the British team will be confirmed at a later date. But having won World Championship silver, Daley and Williams, fitness permitting, would be the expected duo to make the plane.
The silver medal for Daley, who came out of what was an assumed retirement so his son could see him compete, is now a 25 th major medal of his career. As well as his Olympic Gold in the 10m Synchro from Tokyo, he has three bronze medals from the Olympics.
He has won four Gold, two silver, and two bronze at World Championships, as well as five gold and three silvers at the European Championship, and four golds and one silver at the Commonwealth Games.