Tom Daley believes English divers such as Matt Dixon have a great future 

• Diver Tom Daley insists British diving is in a strong place
• Daley is looking forward to seeing how Matt Dixon does in future events
  

By Nick Harris for The Mail on Sunday

Published: 16:36 EST, 3 August 2014 | Updated: 05:49 EST, 4 August 2014

Tom Daley has backed the next generation of English divers to follow in his golden wake, picking out ‘mini me’ Matt Dixon as a special talent to keep an eye on. 

Daley, 20, took gold on Saturday in the 10m platform, an event where Dixon, 14, came a creditable ninth.

‘It was one of the highlights of my life,’ said Dixon. ‘Tom has helped me a lot from a young age, he’s great.’

VIDEO Scroll down to watch Glasgow a 'stand-out Games' - Hooper

Success: Tom Daley bites his gold medal after winning the men's 10m platform final at the Games

Nonsense: Daley has played down reports that he could retire from diving before the next Olympic Games

Both are from Plymouth, both showed precocious talent before they entered their teens and both, Daley insists, can earn further glory for Britain. 

‘British diving is in a very strong place,’ said Daley. ‘We topped the medal table in diving here. We got 10 medals, the most we have ever won in a Commonwealth Games. Four of them were gold.

‘It just goes to show the legacy of London 2012 and hopefully the legacy of Glasgow 2014 will be to see even more people involved in the next 10 years. There are a lot young people in the team who I can help.

‘There is Matthew, who’s 14 and probably even looks younger than he is! I was 14 when I competed in Beijing so it shows young people do come through and that diving is becoming a younger and younger sport. 

‘I’m getting old! I’ve been on the circuit since I was 12 and been doing senior competitions for eight years, which is a ridiculously long time.’

Daley’s medal set now includes three Commonwealth golds — two from Delhi — two European golds, world gold and Olympic bronze. Daley insists the 2016 Olympics in Rio are his  priority. ‘That’s my main aim,’ he added. ‘I’ve heard rumours about retirement and they’re just not true.’

Young prospect: Daley has tipped Matt Dixon to be a future diving star for Team GB

VIDEO Glasgow a 'stand-out Games' - Hooper