Andy Grant is the world’s fastest single leg amputee.
A former Royal Marine, Andy, 28, from Bootle in Liverpool, lost his leg while serving in Afghanistan after stepping on an IED (improvised explosive device) in February 2009.
Six years after surgeons amputated his right leg, he ran 10k in 37 minutes and 17 seconds at Wavertree Athletics Centre, smashing the previously held amputee world record by 36 seconds.
Now his story has been turned into an independent film, voiced by English actor of the moment – and Taboo star – Tom Hardy.
The film, called Paragon, is a documentary by Liverpool film-maker Matt Owen about a year in Andy’s life which includes his successful world record bid and times when he has felt down.
It premiered in Liverpool in February, where guests included former Liverpool FC player Jamie Carragher, one of Andy’s biggest supporters.
Andy, who had a trial for Liverpool as a schoolboy, says: “The trial didn’t work out so, at 17, after watching a recruitment advert on television, I joined the Marines.
“After the accident, I spent two weeks in a medically induced coma and eighteen months in and out of hospital before deciding to have my leg amputated for a better quality of life and for control of my future.
“I’d had ‘You’ll never walk alone’ tattooed on my right leg before I enlisted. After the amputation, the surgeon told me the operation had gone well but, unfortunately, he’d had to cut the word ‘alone’ from my leg.”
That wasn’t going to stop Andy.
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Follow Andy on Twitter @AndyGbootneck and for more information on his motivational talks, see http://agmotivation.co.uk/
To see a trailer of the film, click here.