Rob Davies And Hollie Arnold Turn Tears Into Gold In Rio

Rob Davies and Hollie Arnold have both spoken of their pride at turning disappointment in London four years ago into gold at the Paralympics in Rio.

The pair ensured Welsh athletes have now won three gold medals for Great Britain at the Games, following the triumph of Aled Davies in the shot putt.

Rob Davies won the men’s singles class 1 table tennis final, while Arnold triumphed in the F46 women’s javelin when she twice broke the world record.

Both had competed in London four years ago – Arnold finishing fifth and Davies being eliminated in the group stage.

Arnold – who was competing in her third Paralympics at the age of just 22 – said: “This has been my absolute dream for so long, I can’t believe that I’m Paralympic champion and also a double world champion.

“I’ve been injured for two months, so preparations have not been ideal but I tried to put that to the back of my mind and seize the moment.

“I didn’t expect to throw that far but I’ve trained hard and rehab has even made me stronger in many ways.

“It is pretty surreal really. It was just one of those days when everything went right.

“I knew I had to go out there and perform to my absolute best. I wanted to put myself into a strong position and I think I led the whole way.

“I didn’t even think it was my last throw on world record effort. So when it came up on the board as 43.01m. I just thought, ‘oh wow!’ I just burst into tears. I never expected it to go that far.”

Arnold, who was born in Lincolnshire but now lives in Ystrad Mynach and trains in Cardiff, unleashed a 43.01 metre best to beat her nearest rivals by nearly two metres.

Davies, a former Brecon RFC rugby player who broke his neck in a collapsed scrum, won Britain’s second Paralympic table tennis gold medal on Tuesday.

Davies, 32, suffered a serious spinal cord injury in the freak accident, which took place on the same day his twin brother was involved in a head-on car crash en route to watch the match. His brother escaped with cuts and bruises.

Eleven years on, Davies beat South Korea’s Joo Young Dae 3-1 (14-12, 4-11, 11-9, 11-5) to win Class 7 in Rio.

Initially intending London 2012 to be his send-off from the sport, he decided to continue, winning the world title in 2014 and climbing to world No 1 last year.

“I’ve got to [reflect] on not only what happened 11 years ago, but four years ago in London,” said Davies, 32. “London 2012 gave me that motivation to train hard. That’s been in the back of my mind all the time.”

Davies, who will marry his fiancée Meg next year, says he hopes his victory will show people that suffering a serious injury does not have to prevent them from living their life.

“I just hope I’ve inspired them to get out there and live their life to the full,” he said. “It’s not the end of the world. Just get out there, work your butt off and enjoy life. You can still be happy, as I am now. That’s the main thing.”