Swim England introduced its Hall of Fame class of 2024 at the organization’s year-end National Awards ceremony in Birmingham, England. Tom Daley, Alice Dearing, Mel Marshall, and Glenn Smith were inducted as part of the four-strong class.
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Daley retired following the 2024 Paris Olympics, which were his fifth Games. He made his Olympic debut in Beijing at 14. A year later, he won the 10m platform at the 2009 World Championships, his first of four World Championship titles spanning from 2009 to 2024.
Daley earned five Olympic medals during his decorated career. After winning two bronze medals from the 2012 and 2016 Games, Daley stood on top of the Olympic podium for the first time in Tokyo, winning gold in the 10m synchro event with Matty Lee. Daley closed out his professional diving career in Paris by winning silver in the same event with Noah Williams and was named one of Team GB’s flag-bearers at the closing ceremony.
Alice Dearing became the first black female swimmer to represent Great Britain at the Olympics as she competed in the 10k open water event, where she finished 19th. It was the culmination of a long career for Dearing, who made her senior international debut at the 2015 World Championships.
Dearing also retired from professional swimming in 2024. She remains involved in the swimming world as a co-founder of the Black Swimming Association, an organization that aims to reduce drowning rates of people of African, Caribbean, and Asian heritage, encourage those communities’ participation in the sport, and ensure they have equitable access to aquatics.
Mel Marshall is a two-time Olympian turned coach who is best known these days for her work coaching Adam Peaty. Marshall began coaching Peaty when he was 14 years old and helped him become one of the greatest sprint breaststrokers in swimming history. Throughout a storied career, he has won multiple Olympic, World, and European titles as he broke barriers in the discipline.
Last summer, Marshall announced her plans to leave Loughborough and take a top job at Griffith University in Australia.
Smith has also had a decades-long successful career coaching Olympic and Paralympic athletes onto the biggest podiums. He worked with Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington, Paralympic champions Sam and Ollie Hynd, and Paralympic silver medallist Charlotte Henshaw.
At the same ceremony, Swim England announced revealed the 27 winners of the Swim England National Awards for 2024. Swim England CEO Andy Salmon said “the Awards are our opportunity to recognize those people who give so much to our sports and show such dedication. It was difficult to pick the winners as each nominee was deserving of an award. It was wonderful to spend an afternoon with so many inspirational people gathered in one room. Congratulations to all our winners and nominees.”
