Torrie Lewis shares ‘worrying’ challenge of managing coeliac disease and training for the Olympics

Australian sprinting sensation Tori Lewis has revealed how she copes with celiac disease while training for the Olympics.

The 19-year-old is one of Australia’s biggest stars after becoming a national star the fastest over 100m with a time of 11.10 seconds in January.

She also made another stunning breakthrough in the sprint beating world champion Sha’Kari Richardson to a stunning 200m triumph at a Diamond League meeting in April.

Get the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today

Lewis created another unforgettable moment at the world relay championships in May when she anchored Australia’s 4x100m relay team to break the national record and secure a place at the Paris Olympics

But Lewis revealed she had been ill ahead of that race in the Bahamas after an incident with her toast at a hotel.

Lewis was diagnosed with celiac disease when she was 10 years old, which means she follows a strict gluten-free diet.

She will eat home-cooked meals whenever possible, but could run into trouble abroad with a single crumb that has the potential to “derail her studies”.

“Before races, I won’t eat out if I can help it. I always try to make home-cooked meals where I just know where everything was processed and everything like that,” Lewis told Podcast on the road to Paris.

“Actually, I think I got a little bit of cross-contamination in Miami before the Bahamas.

“I brought my own bread and the hotel said they had a toaster at the back that wasn’t being used so they took it to toast it.

“But that day and the week before the world relays (championships), I got really sick.

“Literally, just one crumb can kind of throw off all that training, so it’s really frustrating and a bit worrying.

“I just try to keep up with it as much as possible and eat what I know is safe.”

Lewis also revealed that gymnastics was her first sport, but she had to give it up because of the illness.

“My first sport was gymnastics and I wanted to do it in the Olympics, but I had to stop because I was diagnosed with celiac disease,” she added.

Lewis will go to her first Olympics next year as Australia’s fastest woman.

She will compete in the 200m event in Paris, as well as leading the 4x100m relay team, which will be the first time since 2000 that Australia has qualified.

“It’s so exciting. I watch the Olympics (every year) from London (2012). I just love seeing all the sports and the fact that we can represent the green and gold at the highest level and do it together as a team,” she said.

“The fact that it was our first qualification and we did it together. It was just really special.

“It was such a special moment and I think athletics is an individual sport as well … to be able to celebrate it together as a team was really memorable.”