About
yona
Born in 1995 through the miracle of in-vitro fertilisation, Yona Knight-Wisdom is a trailblazing Jamaican athlete, making history as the island’s first male Olympic diver.
Yona was raised in Leeds by a Barbadian mother, Grace, and a Jamaican father, Trevor. Grace’s missionary work took her across Africa and Europe before she settled in Leeds. Trevor became a member of reggae band “The Bedrocks”, famously recording a cover of The Beatles’ “Ob-la-di Ob-la-da" at Abbey Road, before operating a coach business for 36 years.
Renowned for his resilience and performance-driven mindset, Yona’s story exemplifies what it means to break barriers, inspire excellence, and create lasting impact.
Yona’s Career In Photos
Leeds Diving TID Class of 2004
First "away" trip 2005
First international medal 2006 - Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Diving in Barcelona 2007
I love sport - 2007
Tom Daley at World Series 2007
The switch to Jamaica 2011
First international competition 2012 - Dresden, Germany
The London 2012 Olympic Torch
Team Leeds heading to Junior Worlds 2012
Junior Worlds 2012 - Adelaide, Australia
International diving family 2012
First World Championships 2013 - Barcelona, Spain
Idris Elba in Barcelona 2013
Junior Pan Ams 2013 - Arizona, USA
First World Cup 2014 - Shanghai, China
First Commonwealth Games 2014 - Glasgow (Edinburgh), Scotland
First Commonwealth Games 2014 - Glasgow (Edinburgh), Scotland
First Commonwealth Games 2014 - Glasgow (Edinburgh), Scotland
First trip to Jamaica 2014
Usain Bolt in Jamaica 2014
First Pan Am Games 2015 - Toronto, Canada
First Pan Am Games 2015 - Toronto, Canada
Qualifying for my first Olympics
Qualifying for my first Olympics
Qualifying for my first Olympics
Personal best performance and World silver
World Silver with my Coach Edwin
World Silver at Rio 2016
Graduation Shoot in 2016
Graduation Shoot in 2016
Move Over Tom Daley
First Jamaican Olympic Diver (1972) Betsy Sharp (Sullivan) in Tallahassee, Florida, USA 2016
The village rings part 1 at Rio 2016
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce at Rio 2016
Asafa Powell at Rio 2016
Sam Dorman at the Rio 2016 Opening Ceremony
Prime Minister Andrew Holness and ASAJ President at Rio 2016
Michael Phelps at Rio 2016
Rio 2016
Usain Bolt at Rio 2016
World Championships 2017 - Budapest, Hungary
Commonwealth Games 2018 - Gold Coast, Australia
Commonwealth Games 2018 - Gold Coast, Australia
Last days in Leeds in 2018
Last days in Leeds in 2018
First days in Edinburgh in 2018
My new coach Jen Leeming in 2018
Monkeying around in Nagaoka, Japan 2019
Adam Peaty at World Championships 2019 - Gwangju, South Korea
World Championships 2019 - Gwangju, South Korea
Instagram comment from Sir Lewis Hamilton in 2019
Pan Am Games 2019 - Lima, Peru
Podium at Pan Am Games 2019
Silver Medal at Pan Am Games 2019
My coach, Becky Gallantree, at Pan Am Games 2019
Silver Medal at Pan Am Games 2019
Team Jamaica at Pan Am Games 2019
Pan Am Games 2019
Pan Am Games 2019
Pan Am Games 2019
White Yardie at Leeds Carnival 2019
Jason Robinson at Leeds Carnival 2019
Leeds Docks Artwork
Awards 2019
Graft at Legacy Awards 2019
Speaking at the Jamaican High Commission in 2019
Nominated for Jamaican Sportsman of the Year in 2020
Last comp before the Pandemic
Grand Prix Silver 2020 - Madrid, Spain
Living room training during lockdown
Alternative training during lockdown
Lockdown training in 2020
My supporter Levi Roots in 2021
Qualification for Tokyo 2021
Budgy Smuggler collaboration 2021
Budgy Smuggler collaboration 2021
HD Cutz 2021
The village rings part 2 in 2021
Tokyo 2021 Opening Ceremony
Olympic Games Tokyo 2021
Synchro partner Yohan Eskrick-Parkinson
Grand Prix Silver Medal 2022 - Calgary, Canada
World Championships 2022 - Budapest, Hungary
THE DIVE Campaign with Botter 2022 - Barcelona, Spain
THE DIVE Campaign with Botter 2022 - Barcelona, Spain
Birmingham 2022 Opening Ceremony
Commonwealth Games 2022 - Birmingham, UK
Post-competition at Birmingham 2022
First major injury 2022
First major injury 2022
First major injury 2022
Post surgery 2022
Return to competition 2023 - Montreal, Canada
World Championships 2023 - Fukuoka, Japan
Pan Am Games 2023 - Santiago
Qualification for Paris at World Championships 2024 - Doha, Qatar
The village rings part 3 at Paris 2024
Paris 2024 co-captain with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony
The end of my diving journey - Paris 2024
Yona’s sporting journey began with swimming and gymnastics until his potential was spotted, aged nine, during a talent identification programme by the City of Leeds Diving Club, with his dream to compete on the world stage ignited after watching the 2004 Athens Olympics.
In 2011, Yona chose to honour his father’s heritage and represent Jamaica, making him a pioneer for diving, and with the instrumental support of entrepreneur Levi Roots, Yona embarked on a groundbreaking 12-year international career taking him around the world to a myriad of prestigious events including:
- Olympic Games x3 (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020, Paris 2024)
- Commonwealth Games x3
- Pan American Games x3
- World Aquatics Championships x7
Among the numerous accolades were four international silver medals, however, there were many moments of heartbreak, punctuated by narrowly missing the 2024 Olympic final by just 3.8 points.
Beyond his athletic career Yona demonstrated a dedication to personal growth, and empowers others to do the same. For over a decade he has coached aspiring divers and is now an AquaticsGB High-Performance Diving Coach based at the iconic London Aquatics Centre.
He balanced the demands of further education by; graduating from Leeds Beckett University with a 2:1 in Sport & Exercise Science in 2016, becoming an Athlete Mentor with the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust in 2020, completing an ILM qualification in Coaching & Mentoring in 2022, and achieving an International Sports Management PGCert with Distinction from the University of London in 2023.
Yona is passionate about the growth of diving, advocating for positive change by serving on the PanAm Aquatics Athletes Committee. He has delivered two successful diving camps in Kingston through the YKW Diving Academy, and aims to nurture a new generation of Jamaican athletes by developing a multifaceted sports initiative.