Patreon: patreon.com/divebeyondsportpod In this episode, Tom Bosworth, a two-time Olympic race walker from England, joins the Dive Beyond Sport podcast to share his powerful journey through elite sport, mental health, and life beyond competition. Tom reflects on rising from grassroots athletics to competing at the 2016 Summer Olympics, winning 20+ national titles, captaining England at the Commonwealth Games, and helping bring race walking into the Diamond League. He opens up about the intense pressures of professional sport, a heartbreaking disqualification at the 2017 World Championships, and a severe mental health crisis in 2018. With support from UK Athletics, Tom began rebuilding his life, sharing practical tools for creating identity beyond sport and finding balance after retirement. He also talks about coming out publicly ahead of Rio with Victoria Derbyshire, and how living authentically improved both his wellbeing and performance. Now retired, Tom discusses chronic injuries, rediscovering everyday life, and his new project Walking With Purpose — a movement app designed to help vulnerable and inactive people build simple daily walking habits. An honest, inspiring conversation about pressure, identity, recovery, and finding purpose beyond elite sport. Show Notes • How does an elite athlete rebuild identity when sport is no longer everything. • What does resilience really mean when pressure, injury, and mental health collide. • How can athletes separate self-worth from results, funding, and public expectation. • What happens when your entire sense of self is built around performance. • How do you navigate burnout, loneliness, and the emotional cost of chasing Olympic dreams. • What role does movement play in healing, perspective, and long-termwellbeing. • How can vulnerability become a strength in high-performance environments. • What lessons does elite sport teach about balance, relationships, and everyday joy. • How do athletes redefine success after retirement from competition. • What can Tom’s journey teach us about contentment, courage, and life beyond medals.

Chapters 00:00 Walking for Mental Health 00:36 Pandemic Fitness Reset 02:04 Modern Fitness Problems 03:11 Walking With Purpose App 04:35 Working With the NHS 07:10 Moving Without Pressure 08:48 Small Walks, Big Impact 10:33 Prevention Through Movement 14:00 Does Housework Count? 16:17 Everyday Movement 17:32 What’s Next 18:32 Coming Out in Sport 19:13 Before Rio 2016 21:50 LGBTQ+ Olympic Athlete Life 25:16 Advice on Coming Out 28:08 Why Race Walking Is Hard 31:01 Injuries & Retirement 32:26 Where to Find Tom Bosworth 34:11 Final Thoughts

Guest Picks:

Book 1: The Chimp Paradox

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Book 2: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

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