Tom Daley makes shock exit from diving semi finals at Rio after leading preliminaries
Tom Daley has made a shock early exit from the Rio Olympics 10m platform diving, as he failed to make the finals, after winning in the preliminary heat.
Daley qualified for the semi-final last night technically without even needing all six dives, coming first with a personal best score of 571.85 overall.
But he failed to make tonight’s final, placing 18th, last, in the semi-finals today, with a score of 403.25.
Speaking to the BBC he said: “It’s really hard to accept. I’ve worked so hard.
“Yesterday I scored the highest score ever in an Olympic Games. Today it wasn’t meant to be. That’s what diving does sometimes.
“I truly am heartbroken because I feel like I am in the peak physical condition and I could have won tonight.”
He adds: “I’m so happy with how GB have done, so proud to be part of it and I wanted to be able to stand on top of that podium, so it will be another four years’ hard work.”
Kate and Helen Richardson-Walsh played in the match against the Netherlands this evening, becoming the first married lesbian couple to jointly win an Olympic gold medal.
Daley who won a bronze medal with Daniel Goodfellow earlier this week in the synchronised diving finals.
Pictures of the water in the diving pool led to a mass speculation as to the dramatic change in colour earlier this week.
Two runners from New Zealand and America made a lovely gesture to one another at the Rio,helping each other to the finish line after they both fell.
An Italian open water swimming star earlier this week become the first Italian Olympic athlete at the Rio 2016 games to publicly come out as gay with an inspirational message about acceptance.
A record number of out LGBT Olympians took to Rio this year to participate in the games, but none were from Team Italy.
Tom Bosworth – a race walker for Team GB – tweeted a photo of himself proposing to his boyfriend on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro earlier this week.
Bosworth and his boyfriend were the second gay couple to engaged at this year’s games, after a rugby sevens player was proposed to by her girlfriend.
At the weekend, a Brazilian judo champion came out publicly as gay in an interview during the Rio Olympics.
