Chelmsford’s world champion diver Rebecca Gallantree has announced her retirement from the sport.

The 32-year-old, who has competed in three Olympic Games, made her senior debut for Great Britain in 2004, having learnt her skills at the Riverside Ice and Leisure centre.

She competed at her first Olympics in Beijing in 2008 after beating tough competition for the individual 3m Springboard place. She went on to compete at both the London and Rio Games.

In 2009 she was partnered with Alicia Blagg in the 3m Synchro and the two of them achieved the result they had dreamt of by winning gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Just a year later, Gallantree was back at the top of the podium and this time at the World Championships in Kazan, Russia, as she was crowned champion alongside Tom Daley in the team event.

On her retirement, she told British Swimming: "Diving has been a huge part of my life and has given me so many unforgettable opportunities and experiences. It's allowed me to travel the world, to meet and work with countless amazing and inspirational people, and to work every day on being the best I can be.

"I have achieved more in my career than I ever thought possible. Representing Team GB at three Olympic Games, winning a Commonwealth gold medal with Alicia, and a World Championship gold medal with Tom, were all things that I would never have imagined ten years ago.

“Competing in front of a home crowd at London 2012, in particular, will always be one of my fondest memories. I hope that my diving career has helped show what can be achieved with passion, determination, and hard work.

Gallantree said she hopes to give back to the sport in the future.

She said: "I have loved being part of such an incredibly successful team over the past 13 years, but I know that now is the right time for me to move on to other things. I hope that I will be able to stay involved in diving in some capacity, whether through coaching, mentoring, or just being a fan! But the next big thing for me is to spend a few months travelling so I can see a little bit of the world away from diving pools.

"I want to say a huge thank you to my coaches Edwin Jongejans and Ady Hinchliffe, who have been such a huge part of my career in Leeds for the past 15 years, and also my first coach, Carol Rushen, who helped me to fall in love with the sport as a young diver. And finally, a massive thank you to everyone who has supported me throughout my diving career - I wouldn't have been able to do it without you!"

National Performance Director Alexei Evangulov paid tribute to Gallantree and her hard work and dedication.

He said: “Rebecca has been a great ambassador for diving throughout her career. She has shown great skill in training and competition and I was really proud to see her win gold in Glasgow and Kazan.

“She has had a great career and I want to congratulate her on her successes and from myself and everyone at British Diving we wish her well for the future.”