Paris Olympics 2024 Betting: Expect Monday MTB glory for Tom Pidcock

• China will likely dominate 10m Platform Synchro

• Tom Pidcock is a value odds-on shot in the Mountain Biking

• Matt Richards can cause a minor surprise in 200m Freestyle

• Ariarne Titmus can best O'Callaghan again

• Use Betfair's Safer Gambling during the Paris 2024 Olympics

Tom Daley unlikely to leave fifth Olympics with gold medal

It's strange to think that there is a generation of YouTubers who only know Tom Daley for his crocheting and knitting prowess. They must be a little surprised to find him popping along to try his hand at Olympic diving. They will discover he is quite good at it, too. Coming out of retirement to try and claim a medal at his fifth Olympics, he again partners Matty Lee as they attempt to defend the 10m Platform Synchro gold they won in Tokyo.

With China's duo of Quan Hongchan and Chen Yuxi dominating the event of late, though, and leading the market here as prohibitive 1/40 shots, Daley and Lee will have their work cut out.

Tom Pidcock a rare Olympic odds-on value bet

It doesn't usually do to wade-in to odds-on shots in an event so fraught with risk and potential calamity as the Men's Cross-Country Mountain Bike, but anyone who watched Tom Pidcock 4/61.67 interrupt his road race schedule in June to pootle round Crans-Montana in Switzerland - twice - and win World Cup races there, will recognise that he is a class apart from his potential rivals in Paris.

In both those races he got buried at the back of the field after slow starts and rode past nearly everyone to take the wins. Assuming he will avoid a similarly pedestrian opening at the Olympics, it's hard to see him getting beaten.

Five fantastic clashes in the swimming

Five golds are up for grabs in La Defense Arena pool on Monday.

Youngster Summer McIntosh 1/141.07 is understandably favourite to win the Women's 400m Medley. The Canadian has swum four seconds faster than anyone else in the discipline this season, and it's hard to see her losing this.

David Popovici has been the dominant force in the Men's 200m Freestyle in recent years, but the event is at somewhat of a low ebb, with times significantly down on the glory days of Paul Biedermann and Michael Phelps. Popovici is young, and can improve, but preference is for Team GB swimmer Matt Richards, who won the European Championships last season and the British Championships in April. He gets the nod for me.

One of the most open races in the pool during this Olympics will come in the Men's 100m Backstroke. Ryan Murphy 8/52.60 has recorded the best time this season - when winning the US Trials - but many expect world record holder and previous world champion Thomas Ceccon to win at 2/13.00. A case can also be made for Apostolos Christou and Hunter Armstrong, though, so it's probably a race to watch rather than bet on.

Tang Qianting 4/91.44 has been knocking out a string of fast times in the Women's 100m Breaststroke this season, and is now up to fourth on the all-time list. Should anything go awry for the Chinese swimmer, Tatjana Smith 10/111.00 should have the better of Lily King 4/15.00. It doesn't look like a apetising betting contest, however.

One of the clashes of the Olympics should be played out in the Women's 200m Freestyle between Australian duo Ariarne Titmus and Mollie O'Callaghan Between them, they hold eight of the fastest times for the discipline in history, and both swam under the previous world record in the Australian Olympic Trials in June. Titmus came off best there, and can repeat here.

Now read more Paris 2024 Olympics tips and previews here