Although he competed in the 1908 Olympics, William Webb had been diving for more than 10 years prior to that, and in 1897 finished third in the Royal Life Saving Society’s National Graceful Diving Championship at London’s West India Docks. He was a member of the relatively new St. James’s Swimming Club in Dulwich, London in the latter part of the 19th century. Webb later became better known as an administrator within the sport, and served the Amateur Diving Association (ADA) as a judge and honorary treasurer and, in 1930, he became their president. In his younger days, Webb was a champion gymnast and was also an experienced mountaineer and is reported to have climbed the Matterhorn before the age of 21.