Qian is queen of the pool

She may have been forced to use a basketball as a prosthetic but that has not stopped her ambition to compete on the sporting world's biggest stage.

Qian Hongyan has joined a swimming club and begun training to fulfil her dream of competing in the 2012 Paralympics in London.

The ten-year-old suffered horrific injuries in a car crash when she was three and doctors had to amputate her legs to ensure her survival.



Unable to afford modern prosthetics, her family in Zhuangxia, China, used half a basketball to help her get about.

But she has not let disability stand in her way and has joined the South Of The Clouds swimming club.

Although Hongyan now has a pair of hi-tech prosthetic limbs, she still uses the basketball from time to time as it helps her get in and out of the pool.