Former Indy car champion Alex Zanardi added a Paralympic gold medal to his list of life accomplishments.

The Italian, who claimed CART titles for Target Chip Ganassi Racing in 1997 and 1998, won gold in the Paralympic handcycling race around Brands Hatch circuit Sept. 5.

Zanardi, who lost his legs -- one at the knee and one above -- in a Champ Car crash at the Lausitzring in 2001, bested nine other competitors in the 16km H 4 Brands Hatch time trial.

He previously won silver in the 2011 World Road Para-Cycling Championships, his first medal since moving into the sport  after a race-winning stint in the World Touring Car Championship with BMW.

"(21 years ago) I got a pole position but ended up second in the race (at Brands Hatch),” Zanardi said. “At this track I have scored a second, a third, but I was still missing the top step of the podium, so today we got that.”

Zanardi has two more events at the Paralympics, a road race on Sept. 7 and a relay race. Both events will also take place at Brands Hatch.

“Nothing Alex does surprises me anymore," Chip Ganassi said. "He is a tremendous person and true ‘racer’ at heart.  Whether it’s Indy cars or hand bikes, Alex has always been a terrific competitor.  We all know he showed that talent when he was part of Team Target here in America, but today he showed the rest of the world his truly invincible spirit.  I have had the good fortune to share many victories with Alex over the years but I don’t know that I have ever been so proud of him.”