Tom Daley puts the knitting needles down as Olympic hero returns to the diving board

Tom Daley put the knitting needles down momentarily to return to the diving board for the individual 10 metre contest on Friday – but couldn’t help himself from working on his latest garment in between rounds. 

Daley, 27, fresh from his Olympic triumph in the synchronised event with Matty Lee, has spent a whirlwind few days setting about on his knitting projects – including a Tokyo-themed cardigan – but is back in action for the individual event.

The Team GB star made a shaky start to the preliminary round, causing a big splash with his opening dive to score 52.20, but his dives improved as the rounds progressed, easing his way into the semi-final. 

18 of the 29 divers advanced to the semi-finals, with Daley one of two British stars competing in Tokyo, alongside Noah Williams.  

Williams, 21, endured a tough day at the office, with two expensive mistakes in the fourth and fifth rounds costing him his his place in the semi-final. 

After six rounds, Williams finished with 309.55 points, putting him in 27th position. Daley ended with 453.70 points in fourth position. China’s Jia Yang finished top of the standings with 546.90 points.

Tom Daley has returned to the diving board to compete in the men’s 10metre platform

He was spotted knitting in between rounds on Friday, having revealed that the activity helps keep him ‘sane’ in high pressure situations. After a shaky start, he went onto finish fourth

Daley has made a Team GB, Tokyo-inspired cardigan during his time in the athletes’ village

The 27-year-old has spent a whirlwind few days knitting following his triumph in the synchro

Daley revealed this week that his knitting exploits have kept him ‘sane’ during his time in Japan this summer, and it certainly appeared to have a calming effect as he was seen picking up the needles between rounds on Friday.

​​’One thing that has kept me sane throughout this whole process is my love for knitting and crochet and all things stitching,’ he said on Instagram.

‘When I got to Tokyo, I wanted to make something that would remind me of the Olympics to look back on in the future,’ Daley said of his cardigan. ‘I designed a pattern for the colour work that would signify everything about these games.’

Daley is raffling his Tokyo-inspired knitwear to raise money for the Brain Tumour Charity, with each entry costing £2. The 27-year-old began donating his pieces to the charity last September. 

The Team GB hero finished fourth in the men’s 10m platform preliminary stage in Tokyo

Meanwhile, it was a bad day at the office for Noah Williams, who crashed out in 27th position

While flaunting another raffle sweater, he teased ‘I will be raffling off lots of things over the coming months so keep your eyes peeled.’ 

Daley finally ended his gold medal wait last week when he and Olympic debutant Lee clinched gold in a nail-biting final in Tokyo. The British pair saw off Chinese favourites Cao Yuan and Chen Aisen by 471.81 points to 470.58.

‘I still can’t honestly believe what is happening,’ Daley told BBC Sport. ‘That moment, being about to be announced as Olympic champions, I was gone. I was blubbering.’  

Daley finally won a gold medal last week in the synchronised event alongside Matty Lee