Grapevine: Zanardi carries Olympic torch

Zanardi, who lost both legs in a Champ Car accident in 2001 but made a miracle recovery and a successful return to racing, carried the flame through a section of the road town between Padua and Venice with the aid of a walking stick.

"I was honoured by the proposal [of carrying the torch], and I had no problem accepting it," Zanardi told Gazzetta dello Sport. "To contribute in some way to Torino 2006 is a pleasure, since I've always been passionate about winter sports.

"I have a house in the mountains by Asiago and I usually go on the ski slopes with a mono-ski which I modified myself. Usually, in order to ski, athletes detach their prothesis, while I manage to build a mono-ski which allows me to keep them on."

Zanardi, who recently met alpine skiing champion Bode Miller, joked: "What have I learned from him? That after a day on the ski slopes, his legs are more tired than mine!"

The Turin 2006 Olympic Torch Relay began on 8 December 2005 in Rome and will tour the length of Italy for 64 days.

The Olympic Winter Games will be held in Turin from 10 to 26 February 2006.