Richard “Dickie” Davies left school at 16 to study mechanical engineering. He then joined the RAF as a Ground Support Engineer General Technician Mechanical in 2009. His career was going well and he was promoted to Corporal. But in in May 2019, his life changed forever.
He was involved in an accident that meant he had to undergo a below knee amputation of his left leg. Having had Irwin Mitchell recommended by a friend, Richard contacted us to investigate what happened to him and process his claim. We continue to support him legally whilst he's undergoing rehabilitation and his transition to civilian life.
Since his amputation in July 2021, Dickie refuses to let his disability define or restrict him. He’s led a personal crusade to prove that ordinary people can do extraordinary things with the right motivation, support, and opportunity.
Dickie’s journey from life-changing injury to four gold medals and beyond started at Stanford Hall, where he was encouraged to apply for Invictus Games Trials – 600 people applied but only 59 were selected, including Dickie.
Dickie was medically discharged from the RAF on 16 March 2023. Team GB for the Invictus Games in Dusseldorf was formally announced the very next day. The hard work started then.
As a boy, Dickie had swam at national level but the demands of RAF training meant he’d not swam competitively for many years. His selection as part of the swim team threw him back into the world of competitive swimming. Residential training camps, top level coaching, and personal training plans forced him to push himself in the pool.
He now had a focus. He had a reason to get up in the morning. Up to that point Dickies’ rehabilitation journey had been lonely with many individual sessions to work on individual goals. Now he was part of a team again, building friendships and relying on teammates for support and encouragement, whilst sharing each other’s triumphs and failures.
Alongside Team GB, Dickie joined Norwich Swimming Club, where he undertook most of his training. He made new civilian friends, giving him a sense of community closer to home and the Club helped Dickie expand his support network outside of the RAF.
During the games, Dickie didn’t disappoint. He won gold medals in all four of his swimming disciplines. But for Dickie, it’s not the medals he’s most proud of, it’s the achievements they represent, how far that journey’s taken him, the friends he’s made along the way, and the opportunity it’s given him to prove there’s no need for you to let a disability hold you back if you try hard enough.
On wearing the GB tracksuit, Dickie said, “this is the closest thing I’ve experienced to the pride of pulling on my uniform in service” – a feeling he thought he’d never experience again.
As well as swimming, Dickie represented GB at archery, where he came a credible 9th out of 55 in the individuals event. He also narrowly missed out on bronze in the Team Novice event, with a 4th placed finish. Dickie also finished joint 6th in indoor rowing, despite a personal best in the one minute sprint. Although he continues to row, archery has captured his imagination. He now has one eye firmly on next years’ Paralympics.
At the Games, he got the chance to meet Price Harry, who wasn’t only impressed by Dickies’ neatly waxed moustache, but also his gold medal haul. The defining moment for Dickie was when his family were chosen to join the closing parade. He says, “it was their journey as much as mine.” His children met stars such as Rita Ora and Sam Ryder, before joining the parade in front of 35,000 people, making memories that they’ll carry for a lifetime. But it wasn’t the stars, the glitz or the glamour that meant the most to Dickie, it was his children being surrounded by para-athletes, and it being normal to them.
After they returned from Germany, Dickie’s son was invited to share the story of the Games at school, which is another opportunity for people to learn about disability sport. Dickie’s mission is to spread awareness of disabled sport, so it’s as normalised as able-bodied sport.
Dickie’s since hung up his trunks, as “you just can’t top that”, referring to his four gold medals. But this isn’t the end of his journey. It is just the start.
He’s a part of the Armed Forces Para Snowboarding Team and he’s been invited to attend the RAF Ski Championships. It’s hoped that he’ll inspire others to try the sport.
Dickie’s gone on to do amazing things in the face of adversity. Through his love for sport, he’s made new friends, joined new communities, and found new challenges. This is what he wants to share with the world – he wants to encourage amputees from all backgrounds to embrace their disability and push themselves to achieve their goals, regardless of what they may be. His message is one of awareness, “opportunity is there, you just need to find it and embrace it.”
On Dickie’s achievements to date, our Military Injury partner Simon Harrington said:
“Working with people like Dickie is why we do this job. He is genuinely an inspiration. His injuries changed his life and cost him his career. But he didn’t let them beat him.
“Dickie embodies the “can do” attitude which sets our Armed Forces apart from all others. With that attitude, and the financial backing we hope to secure by way of settlement, I have no doubt he'll continue to shine in whatever he sets his mind to.
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