Tom Daley gets personal

In a new documentary - Tom Daley: 1.6 seconds - the champion diver talks about his struggle with an eating disorder and the internalised shame he experienced when told to conceal his sexuality.

The documentary recounts Daley's life and career, including his coming-out story.

“I remember organising a party and telling my management he [Dustin Lance Black] was coming..." Daley recalls in the documentary. "They [his management team] said to ‘be careful being photographed with Lance, he is a big LGBT activist. You don’t want people thinking you are gay’."

“I was suddenly filled with shame..." continues Daley. "We had all sorts of crisis meetings. You’re gonna lose all your sponsorship. You’re gonna lose all your fans. Like, how are you ever gonna be able to compete in the Middle East, in Russia, in all of these countries? Filling me with fear about what I should and shouldn’t do.” 

The pressure to lose weight is also something that Daley discusses in the documentary.

“At the end of 2011 I was told that I would have to lose weight by our performance director at British diving..." explains Daley. "And that I was overweight and that I needed to look slimmer, leaner and more like I did in 2008.” 

“It was the first time where I felt that I was being looked at and judged not for how I did in the diving pool, but for how I looked..." adds Daley. "I took some quite drastic measures to make sure the food didn’t stay in my stomach. It was all that I could think about in the lead-up to the Olympic Games. I still feel ashamed talking about it now. Once you’re on the other side, it feels so easy to stop and ask for help. But when you’re in it, you feel like you can’t be helped. In my head, guys didn’t have eating orders, guys didn’t have any problems with mental health. Guys were meant to be macho.” 

Who is Tom Daley?

Born in 1994, Tom Daley has been the face of diving in the UK since he began winning international events at the age of 15.

His gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics was a career highlight, but he has been an elite competitor in this sport since 2009.

Beyond diving, Daley is known for speaking publicly about LGBTQ issues. He also supports mental health organisations and has recently been knitting as part of a fund-raising initiative.

Daley began speaking publicly about his sexuality in 2013.

Marrying Dustin Lance Black in 2017. The couple have two sons - Robbie and Phoenix.

Tom Daley - stripped down