Thirst-trapping – and Knitting – with Tom Daley

Is there an out celebrity today more thirst-trappy than Tom Daley?

Daley, the British Olympian and husband of Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, won gold in Tokyo in July. He has some 3.5 million followers on Instagram and treats his fans with a few thirst-trapping pics a week.

And while he uses his personal IG account to post his personal pics, he has a second IG page dedicated to his knitting, madewithlovebytomdaley, where he shows his handiwork from his knitting hobby. And, of course, some are thirst-traps.

He created a meme when photographed knitting during the Games. Just this week he was profiled in the New York Times for becoming the cover boy for the craft.

What started as a hobby, he explained, became an obsession, and one that he turned to while isolated due to COVID protocols before and during the Games. "I was very grateful to have my little cardigan project to give me that little bit of a healthy distraction and at the same time find calm and peace," he said.

And the Times points out he's doing more than simply making knitting more popular. "Rather than letting the cardigans, sweaters and hats gather dust in a closet, Mr. Daley regularly raffles off pieces he makes and donates proceeds to�the Brain Tumour Charity�in memory of his father,�Rob Daley, who died of brain cancer in 2011."

He also addressed his role as spokesperson for LGBTQ equality, which grew out his feelings as a kid that he would never see himself represented. "I never thought I would be able to do anything, because you don't see yourself represented in that way," he said.

But that was before LGBTQ culture exploded into the mainstream. At least�185 athletes at the Tokyo games publicly identified�as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer or nonbinary, which is more than at any of the previous summer Olympics combined, according to Outsports.

"The fact that more people are out, I think is going to really help inspire young queer kids that don't necessarily know if they're ever going to make anything of themselves," he said. "I want to try and help continue to spread that message to try and make it as equal a playing field for all as possible."

And he also sees himself becoming a knitwear designer. "I would love to make it more accessible for people to learn that they can see something in the shop and then make it themselves."