Daley through to diving final

Tom Daley bounced back from the shock of his near-exit last night to qualify for the final of the men’s platform.

The 18-year-old showed his credentials to win a medal tonight with a solid rather than spectacular display to qualify fourth with a score of 521.10.

And after the scare of the preliminary round, when Daley scraped through in 15th, his morning’s work offered plenty of reassurance his confidence had not taken a decisive blow.

While he failed to nail the high scorer he will need to stand on the podium he showed signs of his quality and a willingness to fight when he secured his highest score of the semi-final on his back three-and-a-half somersault – the leap he completely bombed last night.

The former world champion’s hopes of a first Olympic medal do, however, look restricted to bronze after Chinese duo Qiu Bo and Lin Yue produced another masterclass.

Qiu, who stole away Daley’s world title 12 months ago, qualified in first place after twice attracting 10s in a score of 563.55.

Compatriot Lin Yue also notched a 10 as he finished 21.75 points further back and 20.70 up on of Daley.