Tom Daley sculpture to greet tourists at Heathrow

Daley is a poster boy of the 2012 Olympics (GETTY IMAGES)

A life-size wire sculpture of Tom Daley in full diving flow is now greeting tourists at Heathrow Airport.

Full-scale studies of the 17-year-old Plymouth diver, and of sprinter Jason Gardener speeding away, are now part of the bustle of the Heathrow Terminal 5 departures.

They are part of a special exhibition, running until September 30, to mark the London 2012 Games.

The airport's Sculpture and Sport: A Celebration For 2012 exhibition also includes eight bronze maquette models of athletes by artists including Paul Day, John Buckley, Hamish Black, Judy Boyt, Steve Dilworth, Jilly Sutton, Alan Dun and Suzie Zamit.

Sarah Lewis, Heathrow's sponsorship and experience manager, said the pieces "truly celebrate British sporting talent and artistic prowess".

The airport was keen to make the link as it will be the first cultural taster of Britain that many 2012 visitors will get of the Games.

British sculptors will be creating 30 full-scale pieces for the entire Sculpture and Sport collection.

These will all be displayed in galleries and public spaces across the country, including the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, and as a city-wide sculpture trail in the City of Bath in 2012.

The collection of bronzes will be exhibited at the Oxo Tower Gallery on London's Southbank during the Games.