Tom Daley Announces Retirement After 2024 Olympics in Emotional Statement: 'I Want to Be with My Family'
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08/12/2024 06:12 PM
"I can look back on my 23 years and be very proud," the five-time Olympic medalist said
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Tom Daley at 2024 Paris Olympic Games in France on July 29, 2024.Tom Daley has concluded his Olympic career.
The Team Great Britain diver, 30, confirmed he is retiring in a new emotional interview with the BBC as he arrived home on Monday, Aug. 12.
"It's hard to talk about, it's emotional," Daley tearfully told the outlet. "But you know I have to hang it up at some time. So yeah, I am very proud."
Daley said he was looking forward to being back with his family — children Robert "Robbie" Ray, 6, and Phoenix Rose, 16 months, whom he shares with husband Dustin Lance Black.
Related: Tom Daley Finished Knitting His Paris Olympics Sweater Days After Winning Silver in Diving
"I want to be with my family," Britain's most decorated diver explained. "I'm really excited to be able to spend some time with them and just be able to feel a bit normal for a couple of days. But, yeah, it's just very overwhelming. I didn't mean for it to time out exactly like this, but I just feel very proud of my career."
Although he's looking forward to normalcy, he reflected on his impressive Olympic career, which began when he qualified at 14 for the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Since then, he has won five medals - one gold, three bronze, and, more recently, a silver in Paris.
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Tom Daley on May 04, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan."It's a lot, but I'm really happy with how everything's gone," Daley added. "I just think it's always hard when you say goodbye to your sport. Lots of things to process, but I think it's the right time. Like, this year felt like such a bonus."
"I got to compete in front of my family, my kids and I got to be the flagbearer," he told the BBC. "Bucket list ticked off on every occasion."
Daley said his children are "very proud" of him, adding that the support he's received from his fans has been "so incredible."
"Thank you to everyone that's just been there for me throughout the whole of this," he continued. "I guess it's the end of an era, but I can look back on my 23 years and be very proud."
Related: Tom Daley's Family: All About His Husband Dustin Lance Black and Their Kids
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Noah Williams and Thomas Daley on July 29, 2024 at the Paris 2024 Olympic GamesDaley also reflected on his career in an interview with Vogue, published on Monday in anticipation of the announcement.
"It feels very, very surreal," he said. "I felt so incredibly nervous going into this, knowing it was my last Olympics. There was a lot of pressure and expectation. I was eager for it to be done…"
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Daley shared that the transition out of the sport is "going to be hard."
While he's uncertain how his "days are structured," he told Vogue that he "enrolled in a class, a course at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) in Los Angeles, to be able to learn how to sew." The famed diver — who is also known for knitting on the sidelines — is excited to "add a whole different level of knowledge as to how to construct things."
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