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The irony of Chris Davis missing out on one of the world’s biggest sporting events was that it proved to him that, in fact, the world really cares about him.
Davis, the men’s W1 Para-archery World Champion, was physically wrecked and emotionally devastated after an injury to his shoulder – “my only arm that works” – forced him to withdraw from the Australian Paralympic Team for Paris 2024.
But, as Davis dealt with his ill-timed setback, a series of supportive messages from far and wide lifted his spirits and helped boost his determination to return to competition.
This weekend, nine months since his surgery, Davis will join other members of the Australian Para-archery team, along with some potential future stars, competing at the 2025 National Para Championships at Sydney Olympic Park. With a new shoulder and a new shoulder harness, Davis is aiming to continue his rebuild in preparation for the World Championships in Korea in September.
“I’m getting back to learning how to shoot again, with the change in anatomy in my shoulder,” he said.
“Even though the doctor did a fantastic job putting everything back together … I’ve still got limitations in strength so I’m learning a few different ways of shooting. We’ll get there.
“We’re working on a shoulder harness that will take [the pressure] away from my teeth and my neck – it’s a mechanical device that will hook on to the bow and with a little bit of a twist it releases the arrow – and that will hopefully give me longevity in the sport.”
Davis said he was “absolutely” targeting the LA 2028 Paralympic Games and even Brisbane 2032, a powerful turnaround after surgery last June.
“To come back so quickly is pretty good,” said Ricci Cheah, head coach of the Australian Para-archery team. “But the surgery went really well so I’m not really surprised by his return.
“Chris rose to fame pretty quickly. He went from shooting a recurve bow, made the switch to compound, went to his first W1 comp and finished in the top eight. Then, at his next one, he won the world championship.
“The main thing he struggles with is he wants to be at the top. But it’s going to take time and confidence for him to get back there.”
Davis’s self-confidence was shot when his shoulder went.
“When the injury occurred, it was like ‘Oh, my God, it’s my only arm that works. What am I going to do?’ he said.
“Then there was the realisation that I’d have to have it operated on and there goes the Paralympics. By the second day after the injury, I knew I’d lost Paris, which was really hard to wear for a little while.
“I think the most difficult period was when all my mates had got over there and it was that week leading in. I was thinking about everyone setting up and organising their training. That hurt a lot and I struggled a lot with that.
“But as soon as the Games started and I saw my mates shooting, I was back watching and barracking for them, yelling at the screen and all that. But, yeah, devastating emotionally, and all the effort and thinking ‘Gosh, it’s another four years… Is everything going to hold together for LA?’”
Davis soon realised he wasn’t fighting this battle alone. The support he received made him feel especially grateful.
“You think of Para-archery as a quiet little sport in the corner, but there are a lot of people out there who know me now,” he said. “It was really humbling. There would be all these messages and I’d think ‘Wow, these people are really thinking about me’. I mean, who am I? It was a really strange feeling.
“Everyone [in the Australian team] was really supportive. One of the really touching things was getting a message from one of our able-bodied archers, multiple-Olympian Taylor Worth, just as the Para-Games was starting, saying he was there if I wanted someone to talk to or whatever.
“That really touched me. For him to reach out to me and offer support was just incredible. It gives me goose bumps just thinking about it now. It’s such a nice thing, a thoughtful thing.”
It wasn’t only Australians who gathered around Davis.
“Some of the people that sent me messages I wasn’t expecting. There’s a Turkish archer who not only sent me a beautiful message of support, he donated to a fund that I had to try and help with the cost of this, because it’s an expensive shoulder now. I’ve bumped into him overseas, he’s in the same category as me but I’ve never shot against him.
“The Indian recurve archer, the top one, she got in touch with me. I don’t even shoot in her category and she sent me a message wishing me all the best.
“It was eye-opening to realise the amount of people that are interested in what I’m doing.”
Published 19 March, 2025.
By David Sygall, Paralympics Australia.
