A Lancashire woman who swapped her beauty pageant crowns for barbells has won gold at the Commonwealth Games.
England’s Sarah Davies emerged from a “tough” period in her weightlifting career to end her silver streak and win the top accolade in Birmingham.
Davies, from Preston, triumphed in the women’s 71kg final after runners-up spots at European and World Championships, as well as the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia.
Victory for the 29-year-old came in her first international competition after she had been deselected from England and Great Britain teams for three months for making comments of a discriminatory nature against a fellow athlete.
“It’s been a tough period, but I’ve learned from it and educated myself,” said Davies, the former Miss Leeds and Miss West Yorkshire who swapped beauty pageants for the world of weightlifting.
Sarah Davies gets emotional after winning weightlifting gold in Birmingham (Bradley Collyer/PA)
“I’ve learned my lesson and we go from there. I used the time (since mid-April) to train myself, as…
