A TEACHING assistant at a Thornbury primary school struck gold when his team won the wheelchair rugby competition at the Invictus Games.

On his return to Manorbrook Primary, Mike Spence was given a rousing reception by pupils who had followed his team’s success during school assemblies.

They had made a special gold medal which they presented to him when he arrived back at the school for the first time since the games finished.

Mr Spence, who lives in Lower Stone, was the head coach of the Great Britain wheelchair rugby team who came out on top of the United States in the final of the competition.

Speaking about his return to Manorbrook, he said: “The response I got when I came back was amazing. I had the week off after the games and the school had shown clips of the games and when we won gold in assembly. So they were very excited when I came back in.

“I wasn’t expecting the reception I got when I came back on Monday and I would like to say thanks to everyone involved for the welcome I was given."

The 54-year-old has competed in the sport at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and has been involved in the sport for nearly a quarter of a century.

He suffered a spinal injury in a car crash in 1990 which left him wheelchair-bound, however that didn’t stop him from being involved in sport.

Talking about how he got into wheelchair rugby, he said: “I was approached by the captain on the South Wales Pirates wheelchair rugby team whilst I was in rehabilitation.

“The sport has hugely changed since I started – back then we would use our regular chairs to play but since then everyone has bespoke chairs that they use."

Although Mike retired in 2012 he is still very much involved in the sport and is now a trustee on the board of the sport’s national body.