Victory laps
Epileptic teen takes spin in a race car
Although epilepsy has prevented Yang Tao from running around with other children, it hasn’t put the breaks on his dream of driving a car around a racetrack. A grassroots NGO helped the boy from East China to realize his dream to ride a race car on an international circuit on Monday.
The 14-year-old, from Nantong, Jiangsu province, has had convulsions almost every four days since he was born, and has to wear a helmet at all times to protect against head injuries.
“Doctors in Shanghai recommended surgery several years ago that would not cure his illness but might alleviate his pain to some degree,” his mother, Lu Xianghua, said.
Yet as his family could not afford the 200,000 yuan ($30,220) cost, they were forced to decline the suggestion, she said.
Yang dropped out in the third grade of primary school and is seldom able to play with other children, usually staying at home with Lu.
He has loved cars since he was little and long dreamed of racing them. He said Pixar’s Cars is his favorite cartoon movie.
When workers at Childream, an NGO based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, learned about his ambition, they spent three months arranging for him to take a spin round the Zhejiang Circuit in Shaoxing, Zhejiang.
Before arriving at the circuit, convulsions struck Yang twice. After resting for a while, he set out for his wonderland with a smile on his face.
After receiving some professional training in the morning, Yang took a spin with racing driver Jiang Tengyi and then with best-selling author and rally driver Han Han, traveling at speeds of up to 210 kilometers per hour.
“I felt like I was flying,” Yang said afterward, surprising his mother. Lu said her son is usually shy and seldom communicates with other people, let alone expresses his feelings in front of strangers.
Xu Wenjun, from Childream, said: “Many NGOs offer financial aid to help children who are critically ill, but we feel it is equally important to give them spiritual support. Yang has gained confidence through the experience, which is crucial to his future.”
Yang later accompanied a professional driver and raced against other drivers in the afternoon.
“Racing makes me feel more alive than ever before,” he said. “I will try my best to keep on living.” Contact the writers at shixf@chinadaily.com.cn