Olympic diver Tom Daley has opened up about the devastating moment his father passed away.
Tom’s father, Robert, died of brain cancer in 2011, while his son – then just 17 years old – held his hand.
Read more: Tom Daley’s husband Dustin Lance Black shares beautiful photo of baby son
The Olympic medalist has spoken about his grief at his father’s death on an episode of the BBC’s Desert Island Discs with Lauren Laverne.
He claimed that his father was eagerly anticipating seeing Tom compete at the Olympic Games in 2012.
“One of the last things he said to me was, ‘Do we have our tickets yet?'” Tom said.
“I thought, ‘Tickets for what?’ And he said, ‘Those London 2012 tickets, because I want to be right on the front row.’
“And I was like, ‘Oh my goodness’, because I didn’t know how to say to him ‘You’re not going to be around to be on the front row, Dad.’”
The diver said that he didn’t know how to tell his dad that he wouldn’t make it to the London Olympics.
He spoke about how he had to face the fact that his dad wouldn’t be there to help him begin his journey into adulthood.
“I was holding his hand as he stopped breathing,” he said. “I finally acknowledged that he wasn’t invincible.
“That he wasn’t going to be there to teach me to drive, to fill up my first pint, to watch me win an Olympic medal, to see me get married, to see me have a kid.
“All those things. Because 40 years old is such a young age to die. I was 17, my brother was 15 and my younger brother was 12.
“You know, that’s such a young age to lose a parent and a big, big adjustment to not have your biggest cheerleader with you any more.”
Read more: Tom Daley’s husband visits family grave with baby son
Daley and his husband Dustin Lance Black welcomed their first child, a son, in June via a surrogate.
They named him Robert Ray, after Daley’s father.
Meanwhile, during the Olympic Games in 2012, Tom went on to take the bronze medal in the 10m men’s platform event.
He competed in the Olympics again in Rio in 2016, and won a bronze medal alongside Daniel Goodfellow in the men’s synchronized 10 metre platform.
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