By his own admission Jack Laugher is traditionally calm and composed after picking up a gold medal - not today.

The 23-year-old’s sensational victory at the European Diving Championships in the 3m springboard meant more than just adding another top prize to an already bulging collection – it was about progression.

Two years ago the Olympic gold medallist just missed out on continental glory in London, losing to Russia’s Evgenii Kuznetsov.

But there was no such trouble for the supreme diver in Edinburgh as he stormed past Kuznetsov and Ilia Zahkarov with a score of 525.95 to take his second European gold of the competition.

“It’s the first time in a long time that I’ve been that emotional about winning. I wanted that one very, very badly,” he said.

“The reason I’m so emotional is because it was such a good competition between us three at the top.

“The Russian guys never let me get too far away and it was tight right until the very end. It was an extremely emotional competition and I’m just so happy I’ve won.

“There’s still room for improvement which is great but it was a fantastic competition and I just happened to be the best diver and I’m just so blessed and happy with the performance.”

Eight gold medals across the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and European Championships has kept Laugher amongst the world’s best for the last four years.

Watched on by his teammates and two-time Olympic medallist Tom Daley at the Royal Commonwealth Pool, Laugher was in imperious form as 23-year-old gave off a dominating air of confidence.

But with just under two years to go before the Tokyo Olympics, Laugher is under no illusions that he must continue to raise his level.

He said: “It’s been a really important year for us. We had the Commonwealth Games and coming home with three gold medals is fantastic.

“The World Cup was really good as well. Coming up against the Chinese is very difficult every time.

“Unfortunately they managed to pip me but hopefully that’s going to spur me onto next year and improve on certain things for my diving.

“I’m looking in good shape. Mentally, 3m springboard is one of the hardest events in the world where you’ve got some unbelievable athletes in Europe and the rest of the world so it’s going to be very difficult but I’m going to be giving it my all and hope it goes well.”

SSE customers can get up to 48 hour advanced ticketing, lounge upgrades, exclusive competitions and VIP experiences at our sponsored venues, The SSE Arena, Wembley and The SSE Hydro. We’re also incredibly proud to support The SSE Women’s FA Cup. ssereward.com