Philippe Croizon comes out to meet me wreathed in smiles. He is a happy man. So happy that his infectious enthusiasm for life fuels his career as a motivational speaker. “Anything is possible,” he says. “Look at me! Come in!”
He does not mind people looking at him, despite having had both arms amputated, the left above the elbow, and both legs amputated above the knee. He is not wearing prosthetics, and his sleeves are rolled up revealing the stumps of his arms. He is at ease with his body and the way it looks.

In 2010, Philippe became the first quadruple amputee to swim the English Channel.

In 2012, he linked the world’s five continents by swimming the straits between them. In January, he completed the gruelling Dakar rally.
He has broken a diving record, written books, received a bucket load of prizes... “You see? Everything is possible!” he says.
He gets comfortable in his wheelchair and grins. I have interviewed him by phone several times over the past few years, and he is as open and friendly face to face as he always sounds on the phone. But sitting around the table drinking tea and scoffing chocolate fingers, I am curious. How did he get so happy?

In 1994, aged 26, he suffered an electric shock from an overhead power line while adjusting the TV aerial on his house ...