Articles | Daley gears up for Olympic splash

Daley gears up for Olympic splash

Published: Friday, 13 June 2008, 5:14PM

Britain's youngest male Olympian is set to make a splash at this year's Games in Beijing and ITV News has been to meet him.

Tom Daley, 14, will have the eyes of the world on him this summer when he steps on the diving board to compete in the individual and synchronized competitions.

The schoolboy has already courted attention in the UK with Gordon Brown inviting him to Downing Street to hear his views on promoting sport.

Speaking of his love for the sport, Tom said: "I still do sometimes get scared when I'm learning new dives on the 10m - it's a long way up. The first time I dived off 10m I think I had just turned nine. So when I first did it I had butterflies.

"It was the worst experience of my life really, but as soon as I jumped off the board and you feel the freedom of being in the air, you want to do it again and again."

He may be a star in the making, but Tom still has to catch up with his school work like any other teenager.

He said: "My teachers are very good. They give me work to go away with and while everyone's on lunch break, I have to do schoolwork but they're are very good at helping me catch up when I get back to school."