British synchronised diving gold medallist Chris Mears once injured himself so badly in practice he was expected to die

Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - AUGUST 10: Jack Laugher and Chris Mears of Great Britain compete in the Men's Diving Synchronised 3m Springboard Final on Day 5 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Jack Laugher and Chris Mears won Great Britain's first Olympic gold medal in the men's synchronised springboard diving in Rio tonight. The scores:

• GB, Jack Laugher and Chris Mears: 454.32, gold.
• US, Sam Dorman and Mike Hixon, 450.21, silver.
• China, Qin Kai and Cao Yuan: 443.70, bronze.

It's a miraculous story for Mears. The BBC has a great story about how Mears nearly died while diving seven years ago:

For Mears, winning an Olympic title is a particularly poignant moment - having battled back from near-death.

The 23-year-old from Reading was given a 5% chance of survival in January 2009 after contracting the life-threatening Epstein Barr virus.

He collapsed with a ruptured spleen, losing five pints of blood, before eventually leaving hospital a month later after having his spleen removed.

Mears ruptured his spleen during training as a youth for an Olympic event in Sydney .