An Olympic swimming medal winner cheated death thanks to her lightning reactions when a loo cistern collapsed while she was sitting in the toilet.

Pandelela Rinong, 29 – who won two Olympic medals for Malaysia – was probably saved by years of training herself to dive without a split second’s hesitation.

News of her loo-brush with death came when she posted pictures of the shattered porcelain online.

Huge chunks of the faulty cistern were smashed to bits where, only seconds before, she’d been squatting on the Asian-style loo.

Pandelela did not reveal where the incident happened but said: “Don’t know if I should laugh or cry.”

The heavy cistern appears to have fallen from its bracket on the wall and shattered into several pieces after she managed to dodge out of the way at the last minute.

She added: “Thankfully, I survived with only minor cuts.”

Pandelela is set to be part of the action for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in July and, thankfully, did not sustain any injuries that would prevent her from taking part.

But despite not being injured, she admitted it was something she wouldn’t forget in a hurry saying: “What a morning that I will always remember.”