{"id":34746,"date":"2026-08-09T16:31:26","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T11:31:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=34746"},"modified":"2026-08-09T16:31:26","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T11:31:26","slug":"i-quit-after-competing-at-commonwealth-games-im-now-famous-and-worth-74m","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=34746","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;I quit after competing at Commonwealth Games \u2013 I&#8217;m now famous and worth \u00a374m&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div xmlns:default=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_71ac79\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">Another Commonwealth Games is in the history books and stars will be looking towards what&#8217;s next &#8211; but they&#8217;ll have a task matching what this Hollywood actor went on to do<\/h2>\n<p><button xmlns:default=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"3990795\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Jason Statham\" loading=\"eager\" sizes=\"(max-width: 508px) 508px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article3990795.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/1_Jason-Statham.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article3990795.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s508\/1_Jason-Statham.jpg 508w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article3990795.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615\/1_Jason-Statham.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article3990795.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/1_Jason-Statham.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Jason Statham at the 1990 Commonwealth Games\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Jason Statham at the 1990 Commonwealth Games<cite aria-label=\"Image: BBC\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: BBC)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">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 <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/commonwealth-games\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Commonwealth Games<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The 59-year-old <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/3am\/celebrity-news\/jason-stathams-surprise-diving-career-24617675\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">competed in three events at the games<\/a> in Auckland. <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/jason-statham\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Statham<\/a> came eighth in the one-metre springboard and earned 11th place in both the three-metre and 10-metre events.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Diving events were dropped from the recent Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, despite being a highlight of Statham\u2019s sporting career more than three decades ago. The Transporter star was ranked 12th in the <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/news\/world-news\/\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">world<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;It\u2019s a bit of a sore point I never got to the Olympics,\u201d Statham said at the Mechanic: Resurrection premiere in 2016, following <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/team-gb\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Team GB<\/a> claiming a medal at the Rio Games in each of his three former events. \u201cI just heard they got seven million or something for the diving per year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">JOIN US ON FACEBOOK!<\/strong> <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MirrorSport#\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\"\/><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\"><u>All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;They deserve it. The divers we\u2019ve got now are just terrific.\u201d He added: &#8220;I started too late. It probably wasn\u2019t my thing. I should have done a different sport.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Staham\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cI think what I didn\u2019t achieve (in sports) has probably helped me focus more and take my acting career more seriously,\u201d Statham told the <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/bbc\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">BBC<\/a> in 2008. He initially began working as a model for top brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Levi&#8217;s and French Connection before meeting film director Guy Ritchie.<\/p>\n<div xmlns:default=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37530044\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37530044\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.4552259495425561\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Jason Statham at a premiere\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37530044.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-2257280725.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37530044.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/0_GettyImages-2257280725.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37530044.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_GettyImages-2257280725.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37530044.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-2257280725.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Jason Statham became a top movie star after his diving career\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Jason Statham became a top movie star after his diving career<cite aria-label=\"Image: Simon Ackerman\/Getty Images\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: Simon Ackerman\/Getty Images)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Statham was given his first role in Ritchie\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Following his many notable film roles, <a aria-label=\"CelebrityNet WorthLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.celebritynetworth.com\/richest-celebrities\/actors\/jason-statham-net-worth\/\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">CelebrityNet Worth<\/a> estimates Statham to be worth \u00a374.26million ($100m). However, the actor has previously reflected on what he <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/3am\/celebrity-news\/jason-statham-recreates-commonwealth-games-35594281\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">gained from his earlier sporting career<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cIt 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,&#8221; Statham told IGN in a 2003 interview.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;Diving was obviously a hobby of mine, and being an amateur sport you can&#8217;t earn any money at that,&#8221; he said. &#8220;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.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">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.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Another Commonwealth Games is in the history books and stars will be looking towards what&#8217;s next &#8211; but they&#8217;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&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":34747,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article3990795.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200d\/1_Jason-Statham.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34746","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrity-gossip"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=34746"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34746\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/34747"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=34746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=34746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=34746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}