Tom Daley's husband Dustin Lance Black accuses British Swimming of 'corruption' and creating a 'toxic and unsafe environment for their family' in explosive social media rant... in row over a BUGGY before Brit won gold
- Tom Daley's husband accused British Swimming of corruption in explosive rant
- Dustin Lance Black and their son missed Daley win gold at Diving World Series
- Black and son Robbie weren't allowed onto spectator concourse with a buggy
- Black said organisers have 'created an unsafe and toxic environment' for them
Tom Daley's husband Dustin Lance Black accused British Swimming of 'corruption' and creating a 'toxic environment that is unsafe for their family' in an extraordinary rant on social media.
Black hit out at the governing body after he and son Robbie were refused access to watch Daley perform in the Diving World Series at London's Aquatic Centre on Sunday due to a ban on buggies from entering the arena.
They were therefore not present as Daley claimed gold alongside Grace Reid in the mixed synchro competition.
Tom Daley 's husband Dustin Lance Black has accused British Swimming of 'corruption'
Black missed Daley win gold at the Diving World Series due to access issues over their son
Daley won gold with Grace Reid in mixed synchro competition in London on Sunday
Black took to Twitter to voice his outrage at being unable to watch his husband's victory with his son, who they welcomed via a surrogate last year.
He wrote: 'We are so proud of him! Wanted more than anything to be there, but some rather cruel, thoughtless British Swimming organisers have created a situation that is neither safe nor welcoming for our family.
'British Swimming, it's time you start treating families how other nations do: as assets, not obstacles.
'Sadly, organisers have succeeded in creating a toxic environment for our family at their events so we couldn't be there in person.'
He followed up on Monday by alleging British Swimming had 'lied' about the circumstances of an attempted resolution.
Daley pictured with his and Black's son Robbie, who they welcomed last year via a surrogate
Black pictured cheering on Daley at the Budapest 2017 FINA World Championships
Daley and Black tied the knot in 2017 and welcomed their first child together last year
He wrote: 'So we agreed over the weekend to resolve our dispute with British Swimming in private, and within the hour the CEO put out a press release that is an absolute misrepresentation of what occurred. Or as my mom would call it: a lie. This organisation is corrupt.'
British Swimming responded by insisting they were only supporting the London Aquatic Centre's policies and that efforts were made to resolve the situation.
In a statement, they said: 'British Swimming is extremely disappointed that Tom’s husband felt that he couldn’t be at the London Aquatic Centre to support Tom.
'The London Aquatic Centre’s policy is not to allow buggies onto the spectator concourse for health and safety reasons and British Swimming supported this policy to ensure the safety of everyone attending this exciting event.
'British Swimming recognises the fundamental part that families play in supporting all of the athletes and offered to put measures in place to store the buggy during the event so that Tom’s family could be present. We were pleased to see some of Tom’s family there last night celebrating his success.'
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