John Davis

John W. Davis won the 1921 British middleweight freestyle wrestling title, and in 1922 and 1923 stepped down a division to capture the welterweight crown. In the second of those years, he also won the Cumberland and Westmorland-style middleweight title. Also in 1923, he was one of four British wrestlers chosen to take part in the Göteborg (Gothenburg) Games in Sweden. Having represented England in an international contest against France early in 1924, he then qualified for the Paris Olympics by beating Edgar Bacon in the final Olympic trial at London’s Holburn Stadium Club. At Paris, Davis reached the welterweight quarter-final before losing to the American silver medallist Guy Lookabaugh.

Davis was the eldest of six siblings born in London, his father was an interior decorator by profession. A longtime resident of Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, Davis apprenticed in law writing, and later worked as a law stationer manager. He had two children.