Britain's most famous Olympian finally won a gold in a victory so emotional that a TV reporter cried live on the air

• The Great Britain diver Tom Daley has ended a 13-year wait for an Olympic gold medal.
• The 27-year-old and Matty Lee won the men's synchronized 10-meter platform event on Monday.
• So emotional was Daley's win that a British TV reporter cried live on the air.

The Great Britain diver Tom Daley ended a 13-year wait for an Olympic gold medal on Monday with a sublime display alongside Matty Lee in the men's synchronized 10-meter platform event.

So emotional was the victory that neither Daley nor a TV reporter could hold back their tears.

Daley made his Olympic debut as a 14-year-old at Beijing 2008, where he fell just shy of a medal in both the synchronized and individual 10-meter platform competitions.

He then won bronze medals at London 2012 and Rio 2016, before finally winning gold in Tokyo.

"To finally have this gold medal - I've been diving for 20 years. It's my fourth Olympic Games," Daley said after his victory, which saw him become the first British diver ever to win three Olympic medals.

"Lots of people would have counted me out, being the older person, but I'm in the best shape, physically."

The 27-year-old wept as he collected his medal. In a post-dive interview with the BBC, the reporter Nick Hope was also reduced to tears.

Hope tweeted to say that his director had heard an "odd muffled sound" during the interview, which he confessed was him because he was unable to stop "sobbing."

Daley's gold at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre did not come easily.

By the halfway stage of the event, China's Cao Yuan and Chen Aisen had soared into a comfortable lead, leaving Daley and Lee well behind in second.

But the Chinese pair slipped up in the fourth of their six efforts, opening the door for the British duo to gain the lead.

A score of 93.96 for a back 3 1/2 somersaults moved them to top spot, before a mark of 89.76 for a reverse 3 1/2 somersaults kept them ahead. Their final dive - a forward 4 1/2 somersault - was judged at a brilliant 101.01 to see them finish with a total of 471.81.

In a nail-biting finale, Daley and Lee watched on as Yuan and Aisen conducted their final dive. When their tally of 470.58 appeared on the giant screen, Daley and Lee broke into wild celebrations.

"I still can't honestly believe what is happening," Daley told BBC Sport. "That moment, being about to be announced as Olympic champions, I was gone. I was blubbering."