Tom Daley to make a splash in Edinburgh

By RORY REYNOLDS
Published on 14/02/2013 00:50

TICKETS for the Fina World Diving Championships are expected to sell out in days as Olympic athletes such as Tom Daley compete in Scotland for the first time since the summer Games.

British Swimming has placed tickets on sale from today for the three-day event at the Royal Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh.

Exact teams are yet to be confirmed, but the organisation expects the top eight divers in the world – including Daley and Olympic champion Qiu Bo – to compete at the event, which takes place from 19-21 April.

About 3,600 tickets will be available for six sessions from Ticketmaster from 11am. They are priced at around £10.

Edinburgh is one of six legs in the competition, with Dubai and Moscow among the others. It was last held in the UK in 2011, when Daley and Peter Waterfield defeated the Chinese and American teams to take first place at the Men’s Platform Synchronised event.

David Sparkes, the chief executive of British Swimming, said: “British Swimming welcomes the best divers in the world to Edinburgh, a venue that has seen many great events, and in this modern, refurbished venue we will now see the beginning of a new period in the history of the pool.

“We wish the divers well as they start the next chapter in the life of this fabulous building.”

Steve Cardownie, Edinburgh’s festival and events champion, said: “Edinburgh has won international renown as a premier events destination and this new fixture in our packed calendar is further evidence of the city’s appeal.

“With the competitors likely to include Tom Daley and local diver and European Junior Champion Grace Reid, I’m sure the people of Edinburgh will turn out in their thousands to lend their support. The event will provide the perfect warm-up for the Commonwealth Games the following year.”

The 2013 Series is the seventh running of the event and takes place over six legs. The first two were in Beijing and Dubai. After Edinburgh comes Moscow, Guadalajara and Mexico City.