A LOCAL former tennis coach at Haberdashers’ Monmouth School, Chris Davis will be joining Sir Chris Hoy on his Tour De 4 cycle challenge in Glasgow after being diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer.

We asked him some questions ahead of the journey, including his fundraising activities and the support he has received from the community.

You were a tennis coach at Haberdashers’ Monmouth School; how has sport influenced your approach to challenges?

I think sport is a great asset for people who get involved in it, it gives you freedom, teamwork, self-esteem and confidence. I would struggle if sport wasn’t in my life.

How has your diagnosis changed the way you look at life?

I was listening to the great Sir Chris Hoy the other day in a team's meeting, and he summed it up. You just live everyday as if it’s your last and I know it’s a cliche but when you have terminal cancer that’s what you do. You just live each day. In a very strange way it’s a blessing.

What made you decide to start fundraising for Prostate Cancer UK?

Medicine is expensive, the hormones that I take daily I know are expensive, so I partly want to give back and I wanted to give more money back for people who are unfortunately in the same situation and a lot worse than me.

I won’t just do it this year; I will do it year on year because it’s important.

According to Prostate Cancer UK, one in eight men in the UK will suffer with the disease, but with a family history the chances increase to one in three and for a black man it’s one in four.

Why do you think men's health is so important to speak about?

I think I don’t like stereotypes and generalisation but I will on this one. From my own experience men don’t talk about their health as easily as women do.

If I just look from my own generation, I mean women have coffee mornings, and book clubs and men seem to do a lot of focused targets, like the sports we spoke about. I think men are a lot more reluctant to talk about their health.

Tell me about the golf marathon- what was it for and what was it like?

It was for Prostate Cancer direct; all the money made from it when directly to prostate cancer. I was doing four rounds of golf on the same day starting at 5am to finishing at 7.30pm, fantastic support. I did it in 2022 and I was ringing the bell, I thought I was cancer clear but unfortunately a year later it came back, and this is my way of getting back at cancer.

We have raised just over £5000 now. People's generosity is just mind blowing.

Chris is an advocate of men checking their PSA levels by having a simple blood test.

What does taking part in Sir Chris Hoy Tour de 4 means to you?

Humbling. Totally humbling I mean he has a lot worse diagnosis than I have. He’s 20 years younger than I am, he has two young kids and one of the great Olympians, he’s an extraordinary man and extremely humble and he set up Tour De 4 meaning he just wants to get it out there that just because you have terminal cancer you can still operate and be normal despite the awful diagnosis he’s got.

On Sunday September 7, Chris Davis and many other fundraisers will be joining Sir Chris Hoy on his Tour de 4-cycle challenge in Glasgow to raise awareness and funds for Prostate Cancer UK and those affected by the disease.

You were invited to a team’s call with other fundraisers and met Sir Chris Hoy and Louise Minchin, how did it feel?

It was just amazing. Great admiration for both of those people, it was just a great honour for charity.

What has the support from family, friends and the community meant to you?

Oh everything, Without my wife and my children, grandchildren, very close friends. We call it team Davis. From the very dark moment I first heard I got cancer, and it was dark and wasn’t nice to now have been comfortable because of the support. They have been everything.

What keeps you motivated through your journey?

I’m just a lover of life. My tennis, which I am perhaps known for in the area, I’ve always loved helping develop people. I have developed over 40 part time staff over the 50 years of my career and just seeing them grow and develop into brilliant coaches themselves and just getting up every day, it’s despite all the global stuff that’s going on at the moment, it’s a pretty good life for some of us so I feel very blessed.

What do you hope people take away from your story?

I think that’s more important than the money. I am very grateful for the money that’s been raised but I am much more pleased with the way men have responded to me directly either by email or by stopping and talking to me about their own issues.

Should I have a PSA? Yes you should especially if you’re over 50, so anything from that through to people who have contracted the horrible cancer, I am trying to help them through it, in terms of the strategies I’ve had to help me cope with mine so that’s been the greatest joy I think, having that platform to be able to enthuse and help and as Sir Chris Hoy says “stay in the moment.”

After fundraising at a series of different activities from a golf marathon to taking part in Sir Chris Hoy’s cycling challenge in Glasgow, Chris has raised over £5000 towards Prostate Cancer UK; you can donate to Chris’s fundraising journey here: gofundme.com/f/my-tour-de-4-fundraiser-to-fight-cancer-j62r9