It comes after the 43-year-old South African won a thrilling H5 road race gold medal at Rio 2016 after winning a sprint finish against Italian rival Alex Zanardi.

He also won road race gold at Beijing 2008 and silver at London 2012.

This followed two silver and three bronze medals won in middle and long distance athletics events across the Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing Games.

“The effort [to win in Rio] was totally worth it,” he said.

“My goal was to get to Rio with equipment that could compete with the best guys but also to be physically as prepared as possible.”

His success has been credited with rising the profile of Paralympic athletics and cycling in South Africa.

“We have a lot of media interest after the events, not just the Paralympics," he added. 

"And our achievements are recognised at an equal level with our able bodied counterparts."

He now plans to focus on road racing, a discipline in which he has also won a record 10 Boston Marathon titles as well as wins in Paris, New York City and Los Angeles.

“I have a fantastic opportunity and this excites me a lot,” added van Dyk, who was born with the congenital absence of both legs.