SPEEDWAY star Lawrence Hare was "totally devastated" when he was told the extent of his serious injuries following a crash at Hayley Stadium, Newport, in April.

Since then he has been buoyed by the support shown by fans who have raised thousands of pounds for the former Newport Wasps rider.

"I am over the moon with it," said the 32-year-old, who is now being treated at the specialist Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire.

Lawrence (pictured) was riding for Exeter when the accident happened. "When I fell I expected to go down and just tumble but suddenly the bike kicked me up in the air. That sort of crash happens a lot and I thought 'here we go'," he said.

"But suddenly I didn't know where I was and I landed funny - and the bike hit me for good measure.

"I just laid there. I was conscious all the time. I couldn't sit up, move or do anything. I went in the ambulance to accident and emergency and knew it was bad from then on." Immediately following the accident, Lawrence, with the Wasps two seasons ago, was taken to Newport's Royal Gwent Hospital.

"They were brilliant, the nurses spoilt me and the physios were great." He still had hopes that he would improve, but in the ten days leading up to his first operation he says: "I was getting worse and worse".

Lawrence, who lives in Ipswich with his wife Stacey, said part of his spinal cord had been "squashed" in the horrifying accident.

"It's not completely severed, there is something there. I definitely won't walk again and will have to have a carer as I will need help to get up and get dressed. "Obviously the house has got to be converted."

He now faces staying in hospital until Christmas. He has made remarkable progress in the short time since the accident. But Lawrence added: "You are not human if you don't get down. It's like a grieving process. "I have got my arms and a little bit of chest and back muscle that have got to carry my whole body for the rest of my life."

Nigel Pearson, press officer for the British Speedway Prom-oters Association, said: "He's a great fellow. Thankfully we don't have too many incidents like this. "It is a very rare occurrence although the sport is dangerous."