Andy raises the bar..

..THEN SINKS FIRST BEER IN TWO YEARS

But he could never have dreamed of winning the paratriathlon in Rio when he was hit by a 38-tonne lorry at the age of 16 and thought his life was over.

It robbed him of his dream to join the elite Parachute Regiment and left his world in darkness.

Yesterday, the lower-leg amputee could barely see for the glare of the spotlights as he was crowned champion.

At the Copacabana, scene of Alistair Brownlee’s Olympic triumph last month, the 33- year- old won the men’s PT2 gold medal in 1hr 11mins 49secs.

“I can’t believe this has happened,” he said. “I’m just in shock.

“I’m Paralympic, World and European champion. Perhaps I’ll have my first beer in two years now!”

Half a lifetime ago a day of such joy did not seem conceivable. In his own words, “I thought both my life and career were over”.

Intense

Lewis had woken up in hospital to learn the full extent of what happened the day his motorbike was hit by a truck.

“My only thoughts were of the days before the incident, when I was about to undergo one of the most intense training regimes carried out by any army in the world – all that was taken away,” he said.

“My mother would try to stop me crying and explain that things in life happen for a reason.

“I didn’t accept that and told her losing my leg was not going to be my disability, it was going to make me achieve and no one would stand in my way.”

In 2005, Lewis took the decision to have his right l eg amputated,