Daley: Bronze is for my dad

Teenage diving sensation Tom Daley said he was "over the moon" at winning a bronze medal but said he wished his father had lived to see it.

Rob Daley died of brain cancer last year, and Daley said it was "tough" without him.

But the 18-year-old added that a bronze medal was as good as a gold as far as he was concerned.

He said: "It's really tough not having him here, but I'm so happy with the fact that all the hard work that we put in together, all the effort that we put into training, all the ups and downs - I know that if he was here he'd be very proud, and I wish he was here to be honest, but I know he's not, and to make up for it all my family and friends are here."

Daley has now set his sights on Olympic glory in Rio de Janeiro and insists his best is yet to come.

"Most people peak in diving at about 22, that's just in time for the Rio Olympics so that'll hopefully be my performance peak," he added on Radio Five Live. "I've got four more years, it's about building strength, building consistency and getting even better."

Daley looked elated as the final results were shown in Saturday night's event, jumping in the pool with the rest of his team and hugging those around him while the crowd roared their appreciation.

They had shown they were crazy for Daley each time he took his turn.

The noise from supporters in the 17,500-capacity Aquatics Centre as they screamed, clapped and cheered whenever he appeared on the platform seemed likely to raise the wave-shaped roof.

But as he stood poised on the edge ready to take each dive the audience waited with bated breath and you could almost hear a pin drop.

As his scores were displayed on the board they waved Union Flags and chanted "Team GB".

Excited fans had to repeatedly be told not to use flashes on their cameras, and Daley was given the chance to take his first dive again after officials ruled that flash photography in the crowd had distracted him.

Even Louis Tomlinson, from boyband One Direction, did not get anywhere near as loud a cheer as he was interviewed poolside beforehand. Earlier he had shown his support to Daley by tweeting "Come on Tom!!"

David Beckham was also in the audience and could be seen high-fiving eldest child Brooklyn as Daley stormed to the top of the leaderboard after his fourth dive. His two other sons, Romeo and Cruz, were also with him.

Daley, who was left disappointed last week when he failed to win a medal with team-mate Pete Waterfield in the 10m synchronised platform dive, revealed that the football star offered him some words of advice before yesterday's individual 10m platform dive.

He said: "It was just over text. After my synchro he wanted to wish me well and say 'keep your chin up'.

"He's been speaking to me just saying to keep your cool, and how am I feeling over the last few days, and just generally giving me advice about what have you taken out of the synchro.

"He was asking me the right questions to make me think, about actually it's not that bad and I can come back in the individual event."

Daley, who became the youngest ever male Olympian from Great Britain when he competed in the Beijing Games aged 14, said he felt "so happy right now".

He went on: "Because of all the hard work that I've put in over the 18 months, after losing my dad, all the tough times, and it was about time that my family had some good news, and today was the day that I've got something to show for all the hard work and all the effort I've put in.

"Although it's a bronze medal, for me it's a gold medal."

Daley, who had to contend with abusive messages on Twitter after last week's event, also thanked the public for getting behind him.

He said: "The support from the British public has just been incredible. Now I'm really glad that I've got something to show for all the hard work and Britain's got an Olympic diving medal."