Paralympic table tennis champion Rob Davies will not be defending his men’s class 1 singles title in Tokyo later this month. The 36-year-old Welshman has been struggling with a shoulder injury which has not recovered in time for him to compete in the Paralympic Games.

“I’m obviously very disappointed,” said Davies. “Winning gold in Rio was one of my proudest moments and I was looking forward to defending my title and competing in my third Paralympic Games. But injury is part of sport and I’ll now focus on regaining my fitness ahead of the World Championships next year.”

Penny Briscoe, ParalympicsGB Chef de Mission at Tokyo 2020, said: “Rob was a fantastic part of ParalympicsGB at Rio 2016 and his gold medal will live long in all our memories as one of the highlights of the Games.

“We recognise that injury is always a risk in elite sport and to have to withdraw so close to the start of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games must be desperately disappointing for Rob. All at ParalympicsGB wish him well in his recovery and look forward to seeing him back in action when he feels ready.”