Norbury diving star Blake Aldridge picked up a silver medal in a breathtaking finish to the recent Junior European Diving Championships in Belgium.
Blake, 16, from Gibson's Hill, Norbury, was fifth going into his final dive of the 16-18 highboard competition and needed a near perfect dive to get among the medals. His spectacular 3 twisting somersault from the 10m board earned him a series of nines and the highest scoring dive of the entire competition.
Blake, who trains at the Crystal Palace Sports Centre, has received confirmation of lottery funding to help him achieve his dream of competing at the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
Blake told the Guardian: "This competition was not about winning the silver medal, but the fact that under so much pressure I was able to pull off the dive of my life. When I saw the score board it was the best feeling I have ever had."
Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article