Peter Waterfield

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Peter Waterfield
Personal information
Full namePeter Graham Waterfield
Born (1981-03-12) 12 March 1981 (age 44)
Waltham Forest, London, England, United Kingdom
Home town Southampton, England, United Kingdom
Height5 ft 6 in (168 cm)
Weight64 kg (141 lb; 10 st 1 lb)
Sport
CountryGreat Britain
England
Event(s)10 m, 10 m synchro
Club Southampton Diving Club
Partner Tom Daley
Medal record
Event1st2nd3rd
Olympic Games 010
World Championships 001
European Championships 002
Commonwealth Games 110
Total123
Men's diving
Representing Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2004 Athens 10 m synchro
World Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2005 Montreal 10 m synchro
European Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1999 Istanbul 10 m synchro
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2000 Helsinki 10 m synchro
Representing Flag of England.svg  England
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2002 Manchester 10 m platform
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2006 Melbourne 10 m platform

Peter Graham Waterfield (born 12 March 1981) is a British former diver and Olympic silver medalist. [1]

Contents

Diving career

Waterfield's specialist event during his career was the 10-metre platform event, both as solo competitor and in the synchronised event with his former partner Leon Taylor. Despite their noticeable height difference (Peter is only 5 ft 6 in or 1.68 m, Leon is almost 5 ft 11 in or 1.80 m) in a discipline normally requiring as much uniformity as possible, they turned in strong synchronised performances. Waterfield and Taylor came in fourth at the men's synchronised 10-metre platform in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. In the diving events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, they won the silver medal in the men's synchronised 10-metre platform – Britain's first Olympic diving medal since Brian Phelps in 1960.

In the 2002 Commonwealth Games held in Manchester, Waterfield's best solo showing came when he won the 10-metre gold medal. In the 2006 Commonwealth Games he won a silver medal.

For the 2011 season, Waterfield was paired in the synchronised competitions with teenager Tom Daley; Daley had finished 7th in the individual competition at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and was also a British and European champion. During the 2012 London Olympics, Waterfield and Daley achieved an agonising 4th-placed finish in the 10 m synchro diving competition after dropping their 4th dive.

Waterfield announced his retirement from diving in July 2013, at the age of 32, following a decision to cut his funding by UK Sport.

Personal life

Born in London, he lives in Southampton with his wife Tania and their two sons, Lewis (born 2001) and Marshall (born 2008). Waterfield is a member of the diving club and was coached during his diving career by Lindsey Fraser. He was awarded an honorary MSc by the University of Chichester in 2005. [2] In January 2013, it was announced that Waterfield, who had been losing hair since his early 20s, had undergone a hair transplantation operation in order to look "more appealing to TV companies and big brands seeking sponsors." [3]

References

  1. "Peter Waterfield". Olympedia. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  2. "Graduation". University of Chichester. Retrieved 24 May 2025.
  3. "Hair Transplant – Olympic Diving hero splashes out on a hair transplant – Crown Clinic". crownclinic.co.uk. Archived from the original on 11 February 2013.

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