( CNN ) -- David Weir is to Paralympic wheelchair racing in the United Kingdom as Michael Phelps is to swimming in the United States . Meeting this unassuming 33-year-old , you would n't know that he 's one of the winningest British Paralympic athletes on Team GB . But Weir 's victories -- six gold , two silver and two bronze medals and six London Marathon wins -- did n't come easily for him . Born with a spinal cord transection ( shearing or compression of the spinal cord ) that left him with feeling in his legs but no movement , Weir had to carve his own path to becoming the sports star he always hoped he could be . CNN sat down with Weir after a recent training session in London : . CNN : What was it about sports that always appealed to you ? David Weir : My family was very sports-oriented . My brothers were boxers -- one was professional ; one was amateur . I just got the bug for sports at an early age . So I used to go see them fight when I was like 4 years old . I decided I wanted to do sports , but obviously I could n't do boxing or football , which were my love , so I had to find a sport that was suitable for my needs . CNN : You 've won 10 Paralympic medals ; you 've won the London Marathon six times , and you 've won the New York Marathon . What drives you ? Weir : I do n't know really . I thought I would n't have any drive left after London . And I think it 's just the way I ran my races . I won them convincingly , with a big gap . I did n't win them by millimeters or ( a ) photo finish like I 've done previous years leading up to London . When I started fully focusing ( on ) training for London , and training with the cyclists you 've seen today , I got that extra bit out of me . After the games , I watched my races back and saw that I was winning by a good margin , and I think that just showed me that `` Hold up , Dave , there 's still a bit of life in you . '' London 2012 delivers unexpected legacy . CNN : You 're working on starting an academy with your coach Jenny Archer to help train future wheelchair athletes . Why ? Weir : I 'm just more of a mentor -- I try and get down there as much as I can , but Jenny is the one that does the full program ; she 's brilliant with them . I 'm just there to encourage them really , give them advice and tactics , and a way to push and way to sit in their racing chair , because I 've got a lot of knowledge over the years . So I 'm just trying to give back what I know to the next generation coming through because Great Britain has a great tradition of wheelchair racers over the years , so I do n't want to see it die . So I 'm trying to give back what I had as a youngster . CNN : You 're David Weir the athlete , but there 's also David Weir the father . What do your kids think about all of this ? Weir : Well , my youngest children have n't got a clue at the moment because they 're too young , but my oldest girl who 's 10 -- she 's so proud and happy for me , and obviously my girlfriend is so supportive . They 're just the world to me . It 's another training tool -- when Mason was born and if I 'd have a bad training session , I 'd go back and see his smiley , happy face , and I would forget about that training session and move on to the next day . CNN : Any plans for Rio in 2016 ? Weir : Each month as it gets closer , I seem to change my mind if I 'm going to Rio . I want to do small targets first , really . I 'll be 34 this year . I need to have an offish year so I can do what races I really want to do . But I 'm going to have a two-year target , I think , because I think if I say yes , I 'm definitely in for Rio . It 's a lot of pressure on me , and four years is a long time when you 're 34 . So I 'm going to take each year as it comes really , and make my decision near the time I think , but if you asked me six , seven months ago , I would have said no way -- London was my last big target . We 'll see how it goes -- if I can still win races and perform at a high level , I ca n't see why not . We 'll see . Come and ask me in six months ' time ; I 'll probably give you a totally different answer then .
Paralympic wheelchair racer David Weir was born with a spinal cord transection . Weir is one of the winningest Paralympians on Team GB . He 's starting an academy to help train future wheelchair athletes .