He didn’t want anything getting in the way of a medal at London 2012, telling friends that even girlfriends were off the schedule. But now, with his Olympic dream accomplished, diver Tom Daley has wasted no time in pursuing a close friendship. So much so that he had childhood sweetheart and fellow diver Kassidy Cook, 17, fly from the US to see him – only a day after he received his bronze medal.
Will they take the plunge? Tom Daley and his rumoured girlfriend US diver Kassidy Cook cuddle up on the couch after enjoying a night out watching the Lion King.
A three-times junior American champion on the 3m springboard, Miss Cook arrived at the weekend and the pair have been making the most of their time together, enjoying a date to see the Lion King and cosy video chats with her family back in the States – prompting speculation that they are an item.
They have known each other since they were young thanks to their diving connections and have stayed in regular contact since, with Miss Cook being a great support to Daley, 18, when his father Rob died in May last year.
Since arriving in London, Miss Cook, who was unable to compete at London 2012 because of a shoulder injury, has posted more photographs on Twitter of herself and Daley, where they appear to be snuggling up to each other. When one of Daley’s many Twitter followers and fans told Miss Cook she was jealous of her friendship with the diving star, she replied: ‘I’m going to London tomorrow to visit. I’ll put in a good word for ya?’ The two young divers first met when they were just 13 years old and have kept in touch ever since.
Kassidy, 17, failed to make the US Olympic team after dislocating her shoulder but flew out at the end of the games to meet up with Tom
Last month To***ong-time friend and fellow Team GB diver Tonia Crouch revealed he and the American were a 'hot couple' .
Last month To***ong-term friend and fellow diver Tonia Couch revealed that Tom had indeed been romancing the American. She revealed: 'He likes his American girls. Kassidy and he always see each other when they go away,” she told Heat magazine. ''They buy each other birthday presents because they’re both born in May. They’re not boyfriend-girlfriend but they’re a very hot couple.' Tom's mum recently revealed that he hasn't had a 'proper' girlfriend that she knows of, while Tonia said that the teen hadn't been keen on having a relationship until after the Olympics, so Kassidy could be striking while the iron is hot. In recent months he has declared he is ‘not up for a relationship’. It is Daley’s second romance with an American diver, after he admitted kissing Mary Beth Dunnichay, from Indiana, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when he was 14.