The 47-year-old, who lost both of his legs in a high-speed crash in 2001, will compete in the Blancpain GT series - formerly known as the International Automobile Federation (FIA) GT - when it comes to the British circuit on May 17 and 18.

Zanardi won two Cart titles in the US before his accident and returned to racing two years after the crash, competing in the FIA World Touring Car Championship for the BMW team from 2003 to 2009.

However, now he will race solo on the full 2.4-mile Grand Prix layout on the track, where he secured gold in the Paralympic men's H4 road race and time trial, in a BMW Z4 GT3, which has been adapted to use hand-operated controls.

Alex Zanardi won two gold medals in handcycling at the London 2012 Paralympics
©AFP/Getty Images


"I don't want to sound too excited, but it was at least as good as I could have dreamt it would be," Zanardi, who clinched his first International Cycling Union (UCI) handcycling world title at the Para-Cycling World Championships in Baie-Comeau last August, said after testing the car.

"The car is so nice to drive and I am back with a team where I am meeting a lot of old friends.

"The BMW Z4 GT3 is a lot of fun.

"It is powerful and it suits my natural driving style quite well."

He will be up against some of the world's top drivers in the two one-hour sprint-style races, with manufacturers such as Audi, Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, Porsche, Lamborghini, Nissan and Chevrolet expected to be represented, while multiple world rally champion Sébastien Loeb raced for his own team in last year's series.

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