HELENSBURGH'S Paralympic hero Gordon Reid returned to his home town this week for the first time since his double medal triumph in Rio.

Gordon, who won gold in the men's singles and silver with Alfie Hewett in the men's doubles, came back home to speak to pupils at Lomond School after a request from his younger cousin Sophie, a first year pupil at the school.

A former pupil at Hermitage Academy and a keen athlete since childhood, Gordon – who brought his Rio medals with him – spoke frankly to the school's S1 students about his experience of coping with disability after he was diagnosed at the age of 12 with transverse myelitis, a rare neurological condition which saw him paralysed below the waist.

“I'd been really sporty as a kid,” he said. “When this happened I felt as if a big part of my life had been taken away.

“I was playing football with my friends, then went home and sat down - and when I stood up again my legs gave way.

“I didn't think at the time it was anything too serious – I went to bed, and felt fine the next morning.

“But over that day I began to get really bad pains in my lower back, and by the end of the day I'd completely lost all feeling from the waist down.”

He was set on the path to Paralympic and Grand Slam glory by his parents, who introduced him to fellow wheelchair tennis players at a club in Glasgow.

“I saw how friendly, funny and happy they were,” he continued, “and I realised what had happened to me wasn't the end of the world.

“It's just a different way of living and you can still live an amazing life.”

Gordon's Paralympic triumph capped a memorable year on the tennis court in which he won the men's wheelchair singles titles at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

Additionally he partnered Alfie Hewett to victory in the men's doubles at SW19 in July – and, off the back of his Rio success, he's climbed to number one in the world rankings.

In the course of a fascinating hour-long talk, Gordon answered questions from pupils on his motivation, his inspiration, his fitness regime – and even, in his Rio doubles final, whether he'd deployed a tactic to get partner Hewett to work extra hard ahead of the pair's singles final 24 hours later!

Lomond School principal Johanna Urquhart, writing in the school's weekly newsletter, said: “During the questions Gordon talked about the support his friends and family gave him when he was ill and how it motivates him to succeed.

“He explained that winning competitions is a great way to thank them for everything they have done for him.

“He also spoke about the importance of nutrition and rest and told the story of that all important moment when he took his place on the podium in Rio to receive his Gold medal, which he allowed our pupils to hold before signing autographs.

“The drama studio was buzzing with excitement and it was clear that both pupils and teachers are in awe of Gordon and his achievements.”

* We'll have more of Gordon's thoughts from his Lomond School visit on the Advertiser's website later this weekend.