Davies' discus passion renewed for Commonwealth Games

Aled Sion Davies feels he has opened "Pandora's Box" before what could be his final Commonwealth Games with Wales.

Dual-sport athlete Davies, 35, is competing in the F42-44/F61-64 discus at this summer's Games in Glasgow, returning to the sport he now sees as a hobby.

The three-time Paralympic gold medallist has hardly picked up a disc since winning Commonwealth Games gold in 2022, with shot put his priority.

A move to Australia after surgery to combat osteitis pubis - a condition that causes inflammation around the groin - has reinvigorated his passion for discus.

"That has changed everything for me, it gave me that belief again," Davies told BBC Sport.

"The new group is a breath of fresh air and has given me something to chase again.

"Having that operation, changing my coach, making my body as efficient as possible, has been the biggest learning curve.

"I feel like I've opened Pandora's Box in terms of throwing."

Davies spent a year out of action after surgery, and bounced back by winning his seventh consecutive F63 shot put title at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships.

Now training with renowned throwing coach Dale Stevenson in Adelaide, the Welshman is taking better care of his body after pushing through the pain barrier at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.

"I wanted to explore every option because I didn't feel like a student in the relationship anymore. To move away has been really refreshing," he continued.

"I thought I might have left it a little too late in my career, but where science and medicine have evolved, I've realised there's a lot left to squeeze out of the lemon."

Davies remains disappointed with his shot put silver in 2024 and said the result convinced him he needed to take action to keep pace with Kuwait's Faisal Sorour.

"Losing on someone else's terms was not nice. It wasn't because he was better, it was because I was broken," Davies reflected.

"I look back now, and I was almost like a big wooden door, spinning around in a circle."

Despite his world number one ranking, Davies says he has relinquished his own expectations but understands that the public will be anticipating another gold medal.

Doing that has been made more difficult by a change in throwing pattern, and he will need to avoid returning to his old tricks.

"People are expecting me to go in there [and defend the gold medal], but I really don't know," he said when asked what version of him we will see in Scotland.

"Because I've changed so much technically, I'm caught between two movement patterns.

"I've been put on a new graph with a higher trajectory, but I need to stop going back to the old favourites because it's bringing my ceiling down.

"Taking a couple of steps back to go further forward is probably where I'm at at the moment.

"It's tough, but I've got the experience. If anyone is going to do it, it's probably going to be me."

Davies already has his eyes on winning shot gold at the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles and accepts this will likely be his final time competing in the Commonwealth Games.

"My main focus is shot put, not discus any more. We know there is always a lottery with the Para events at the Commonwealth Games," he explained.

"I'm a lot older now, and I think there is a realistic chance that this could be my last one. I think this will definitely be my last discus competition, anyway.

"If there is shot put in the next Commonwealth Games, then great. LA is where I'm going for that gold."