Chinese diver Qiu Bo, right, and British diver Thomas Daley perform diving during a sports exchange program between the countries in Shanghai, Oct 15, 2012. [Photo by Gao Erqiang / China Daily]

Qiu and Daley showed great mutual respect during the event and are looking forward to competing against each other again soon.

"I have a small injury to my shoulder, but as soon as I recover, I expect to perform better than before," said Qiu.

Meanwhile, Daley is aiming at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, but realizes it will be tough to improve his bronze finish at home this year.

"I went to the junior world championships last week and there were some very good junior divers coming through - especially from China. All I can do is keep training and working hard to compete with them," said Daley.

The event was organized by the British Consulate-General in Shanghai to celebrate the sporting links between China and Britain after the London Olympics.

"Daley and Qiu standing side by side illustrates the depth and level of people-to-people exchanges between China and the UK and is a great opportunity to celebrate the success of Chinese and British athletes at the London Olympics," said Brian Davidson, the British consul-general in Shanghai.

yuran@chinadaily.com.cn