Tom Daley is stepping away from diving to recover from injuries
The Olympian will start training in autumn but won't compete again until 2019
By Steve Brown
Tom Daley is taking a break from diving to order to recovery after a series of ailments.
The 23-year-old Olympian – who is expecting his first child with husband Dustin Lance Black – suffered a number of injuries while training for the Commonwealth Games in Australia this year.
First, Daley suffered a concussion in March which kept him off the 10m board and also contracted pneumonia earlier in the year.
He also injured his hip and had to step away from defending his Commonwealth Games title in the single diving event.
Although he is stepping away to recover, he admitted he will be back to training in autumn but isn’t set to compete in any major event until 2019, according to British Swimming.
He said: “Diving is a huge part of my life, and I have dedicated the last 15 years to it.
“I want to keep performing at the highest level for myself, my family and my fans, but in order to do that I need time to take some time to recover.
“I’ll be using the rest of the year to spend time with my husband and new baby and work on projects close to my heart.
“I am sure this will give me the time I need to be in a position to compete at my best going into the next Olympics.”
Alexei Evangulov, National Performance Director for diving added: “We have had a meeting with Tom, his coach Jane and our medical team and agree a break from competition is what he needs to enable him to return to his best ability in 2019 and going into Tokyo 2020.
“The global diving schedule this year has already been busy, and it is vital that all our divers take care of themselves physically and emotionally, in what is a very demanding sport.”