British teen Daley wins platform world diving title

BRITISH teenager Tom Daley has sensationally added the world title to his European gold after a dramatic 10m platform final in Rome.

SHOCK: Tom Daley can't believe it after winning the platform diving title in Rome

The 15-year old becomes the first British diver to win a world diving medal since Peter Waterfield and Leon Taylor's synchro silver four years ago.

It is the first world diving medal since Peter Waterfield and Leon Taylor came second in the 10m synchro in 2005.

Daley was always among the medals but was placed third coming into the final round of dives behind China's Qiu Bo, who beat him to the world youth title last year, and Australia's Matthew Mitcham, the Olympic champion.

Daley - who was ranked fourth in the world after this year's FINA World Series - guaranteed himself a medal after he nailed his sixth attempt to post a final score of 539.85, just outside his personal best.

And Bo and Mitcham then both fluffed their lines to give the Plymouth teenager - who shot to fame at last year's Beijing Olympics as the youngest British Olympian in 48 years - his biggest-ever prize.

Bo settled for silver while Mitcham dropped out of the medals altogether, Luxin Zhou snatching bronze from his grasp.

“I can’t believe it,” said Daley.

GOLDEN BOY: Tom Daley shows off his medal after winning the 10m platform title at the World Championships in Rome (Getty Images)

“I was obviously giving it my very best but I honestly thought I would finish fourth as the guys ahead of me were all diving superbly.

 “I would have been happy with fourth as my only aim was to dive well but to go from fourth to bronze to silver and then gold was unbelievable.
 
“I woke up today thinking I would just enjoy the competition, it is just an amazing sensation. It was unthinkable what happened, I just fell to the floor.
 
“I just didn’t know what to do. All of the hard work from everyone has really paid off. I am totally stunned.”

Daley's father Rob, who arranged for his son to move schools recently after his son was the victim of bullying, burst into the winner's press conference to hug the new world champion and admitted he was 'overwhelmed' by the performance.

"It's unbelievable. i had a flashback of his life and I looked up and thought he's a world champion and he's 15," he said.

"It was a brilliant feeling when he was fourth and when he got bronze, it was amazing. When he got silver I thought 'don't let it stop'.

"Then waiting for the last score when the Chinese man dived seemed like an eternity."

Daley will now look to win a second medal in Saturday's synchro, when he partners fellow teen Max Brick.

Earlier, China's Guo Jingjing won the women's 3m springboard final ahead of Canada's Emilie Heymans and Italy's Tania Cagnotto.