Taylor: Daley owes a lot to National Lottery funding

By Nick Webster, Sportsbeat

FORMER Olympic silver medallist Leon Taylor insists Britain would never have produced teenage diving sensation Tom Daley if it wasn't for National Lottery funding.

GOLDEN REWARD: Leon Taylor admits lottery funding played a big part in protege Tom Daley's summer success in Rome (Getty Images)

Daley won 10m individual gold as a 15-year old at July's World Championships but Taylor, who won Olympic 10m synchronised silver at Athens in 2004, admits the financial support the British team receive is a far cry from when he first dipped his toes in the sport.

While Daley was flown back from Rome a national hero, Taylor's return from his first Olympics at Atlanta 1996 was followed by the majority of the British squad selling their Olympic kit to fund their next season of competition.

But Olympic sports in Britain were transformed, just two years later, after the introduction of National Lottery funding and Taylor is adamant this was the catalyst for Daley's success.

"The success and uniqueness of Tom Daley will ensure the sport is taken to the next level but it was the introduction of funding in 1998 that changed the sport dramatically," said Taylor, who has mentored Daley in the early stages of his career.

"I went to my first Olympics in 1996 and, at the time, diving was a hobby of mine. It was all self-funded.

"I worked really hard off my own back and there was little or no financial support.  As a result, we were only able to do one or two competitions a year.

"When we pitched up against the best in the world such as the Australians and Americans, who already had proven financial systems in place for their athletes, it was no wonder we couldn't compete on the medal table."

With the European Championships in August and the Commonwealth Games in October, 2010 is set to be another hectic year for Daley as he continues to build up to the London Olympics.

But Taylor insists July's Diving World Cup in Changzhou, China will be the best preparation for the hype and expectation that will surround him as a home medal prospect in the capital in 2012.

"Diving is the third most popular sport in China," said Taylor. "So if you're good at it out there, you're treated like a demi-god.  The World Cup will be a great experience for Tom.

"Tom's age makes him a unique competitor so I think he'll be very well received out there.

"The main focus will be on China in June and the European Championships a couple of months later.

"The Commonwealth Games are great for TV and for the profile but not so much for a diver's season.  It makes it a really long competition season because they're quite late in the year.

"The close season usually runs from August until January and as much as the excitement of competing is great, you have to be very mindful of the long term goal and to stay injury free."