The Hindu : Sport / Olympic Games : Tom Daley puts Beijing in a spin

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Aug 09, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Sport

Sport - Olympic Games

Tom Daley puts Beijing in a spin

Andy Bull

— Photo: AFP

OUT TO HAVE FUN: British diving sensation Tom Daley, who has been the cynosure of all eyes, hopes to gain some experience.

BEIJING: Tom Daley, pleasantly cocksure and deeply tanned, sat confidently in the middle of the strongest diving team Britain has ever sent to the Olympics. With 10 athletes here, Britain is one of just five nations to be represented in every diving event. But there’s no doubt who their star is.

Despite all the excitement surrounding him — and his press conference drew an international audience — Daley was reticent about his chances at his first Olympics.

“I’m just here for the experience and the fun,” he said. “It’s always been my dream to come to the Games, but I’m not expecting to win anything, I’d rather work harder for London 2012 and win a medal there. I just want to go out there and have fun. If I do something bad, that’s fine, I’ll learn from it and take it on to 2012.”

Daley has clearly taken to the Olympics like the proverbial duck to water. On Friday morning, he reported, he had breakfast with Jamie Murray and on Thursday night he had his photo taken with Rafael Nadal.

“People have been coming up to me in the streets and around the village,” Daley continued. “It’s weird, when you’re little you always dream of being that person who people recognise, it’s really weird.”

Popular sport

Diving is popular in China, and their team is phenomenally strong. Britain’s performance director, Steve Foley, admitted that it wouldn’t be surprising to see China clean sweep the gold medals, but he also suggested that the men’s platform individual and synchronised were “wide open.” These are Daley’s events.

“He’s a breath of fresh air to dive with. Diving with Tom keeps me young in my mind and body, ” said his partner in the synchronised event, Blake Aldridge

Daley’s entire family is coming to watch him dive, “My mum and Dad, my three brothers, both grandparents and their business partners. Twelve people in all.”

With the synchronised event starting on Monday, he’ll soon have to get used to bigger crowds than that. — © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2008

Beijing Olympic games - opening ceremony

Beijing 2008 - On the eve of opening ceremony

The 2004 Olympics in Athens

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport