Tom Daley says his gold medal at Tokyo 2020 can serve as a beacon of hope for young LGBTQ athletes.
In tandem with Matty Lee, he claimed gold in the men's 10m platform synchronised diving on Monday morning with a score of 471.81.
Chinese duo Cao Yuan and Chen Aisen took silver (470.58) with Russian athletes Aleksandr Bondar and Viktor Minbaev claiming bronze (439.92). China had dominated the event since the Athens Olympics of 2004 in Greece.
Flanked by the Chinese and Russian medalists - countries where LGBTQ rights are heavily suppressed - Daley told the media, "I hope that any young LGBT person out there can see that no matter how alone you feel right now, you are not alone.
“I feel incredibly proud to say I am a gay man and also an Olympic champion.”
Gold medal winner Tom Daley says he hopes his performance will inspire young LGBT people to realise “you can achieve anything”.
Read more: https://t.co/9b5sr5kcZe pic.twitter.com/XCFyZR5S7A— LBC (@LBC) July 26, 2021
"You can achieve anything and there is a whole lot of your chosen family out here, ready to support you.”
Daley came out as gay in 2013, and married his partner - American screenwriter, Dustin Lance Black - in 2017. Together they welcomed their first child in 2018.
The 27-year old is one of just 142 'out' LGBTQ athletes competing in the Japanese capital this month.
"I feel incredibly proud to say that I am a gay man and also an Olympic champion," Daley said.
"When I was younger I didn’t think I’d ever achieve anything because of who I was. To be an Olympic champion now just shows that you can achieve anything.”
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