Olympic champion Jack Laugher is confident he can add a world title to his ranks after being named in British Diving's 13-person squad for next month's World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju.
Laugher holds Commonwealth, European and Olympic titles but the world crown has thus far eluded him, an unwanted run he’ll be looking to end in South Korea, where Olympic qualification is also up for grabs.
As well as competing as an individual from 3m, the 24-year-old will line up with fellow Olympic medallist Dan Goodfellow for the first time in the synchro event at this level, confident of his and the British team’s chances of success.
“I go into every competition with the goal of winning and that will be no different in Gwangju, both in the individual event and with Dan in the synchro,” said Laugher of the Championships, which begin on July 12.
“It’s been a good year so far, with my performances improving as the weeks have gone by, so I’m excited to see what we can do at the World Championships.
“Great Britain is now one of the top diving nations in the world, so as a team we’ll be looking to win a number of medals and secure as many Olympic spots as we can.”
Fellow Olympic medallist Tom Daley will also be looking to build on his rich vein of form, having secured the overall FINA Diving World Series crown, and he too has a new synchro partner in Matty Lee.
Daley will be looking to retain his title in the men’s 10m Platform but will also have one eye on securing his spot at Tokyo 2020, while Grace Reid, Kat Torrance and Lois Toulson are among those also harbouring similar ambitions.
Alongside the proven championship performers are numerous new names on the team, with recently-crowned British champions Scarlett Mew Jensen and Noah Williams making their maiden World Championship appearances.
The full Great Britain team:
Robyn Birch – 10m Eden Cheng – 10m Synchro Tom Daley – 10m, 10m Synchro Daniel Goodfellow – 3m Synchro Ross Haslam – 1m James Heatly – 1m, 3m Jack Laugher – 3m, 3m Synchro Matty Lee – 10m Synchro Scarlett Mew Jensen – 1m, 3m Grace Reid – 3m, 3m Synchro Katherine Torrance – 1m, 3m Syncro Lois Toulson – 10m, 10m Synchro Noah Williams – 10m Sportsbeat 2019