Another Commonwealth Games is in the history books and stars will be looking towards what’s next – but they’ll have a task matching what this Hollywood actor went on to do
Jason Statham at the 1990 Commonwealth Games(Image: BBC)
Jason Statham competed as an elite athlete before a remarkable career change made him a Hollywood star. He represented England in diving at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.
The 59-year-old competed in three events at the games in Auckland. Statham came eighth in the one-metre springboard and earned 11th place in both the three-metre and 10-metre events.
Diving events were dropped from the recent Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, despite being a highlight of Statham’s sporting career more than three decades ago. The Transporter star was ranked 12th in the world for platform diving during his career but the Olympic Games eluded him after competing in trials ahead of the 1988 Seoul Games and the Barcelona Olympics four years later.
“It’s a bit of a sore point I never got to the Olympics,” Statham said at the Mechanic: Resurrection premiere in 2016, following Team GB claiming a medal at the Rio Games in each of his three former events. “I just heard they got seven million or something for the diving per year.
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“They deserve it. The divers we’ve got now are just terrific.” He added: “I started too late. It probably wasn’t my thing. I should have done a different sport.”
Staham’s passion for diving began after watching someone regularly practice a high-dive during a family holiday. He joined the British National Diving School in 1985, but believes that falling short of sporting success gave him extra motivation as he began to move away from diving.
“I think what I didn’t achieve (in sports) has probably helped me focus more and take my acting career more seriously,” Statham told the BBC in 2008. He initially began working as a model for top brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Levi’s and French Connection before meeting film director Guy Ritchie.
Statham was given his first role in Ritchie’s 1998 hit Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, alongside his childhood friend Vinnie Jones. The pair also worked together with Ritchie in Snatch, before Statham earned a reputation as a bankable movie star.
Following his many notable film roles, CelebrityNet Worth estimates Statham to be worth £74.26million ($100m). However, the actor has previously reflected on what he gained from his earlier sporting career.
“It was a great experience, you know, to travel the world and compete at a certain level. It teaches you discipline, focus, and certainly keeps you out of trouble,” Statham told IGN in a 2003 interview.
“Diving was obviously a hobby of mine, and being an amateur sport you can’t earn any money at that,” he said. “So I used to put money in my pocket while working on the street corners, selling perfume and jewellery, and other goods that were supposedly expensive.”
Statham has since earned riches from his acting career but has not forgotten his diving skills. Last year, holiday snaps emerged of him diving off a yacht while with his family in Positano, Italy.
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