Fighter Liam meets his favourite wrestlers
A BOY from Hinckley battling a second brain tumour met his wrestling heroes.
Liam Chase, nine, locked arms with the brawny fighters at the Birmingham Genting Arena.
He knew his parents had tickets for WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) Live, but wasn’t expecting to meet American pros Randy Orton and AJ Styles backstage.
Cancer charity CLIC Sargent contacted WWE to organise the encounter, after hearing Liam was a huge wrestling fan.
It also arranged for free tickets to the event for Liam and his family.
Faye Beardsmore, Liam’s mum, said: “The look on Liam’s face when we surprised him was a picture.
“Liam has been through so much, but he’s a fighter too.
“We have a long road ahead of us, but he’s staying positive.”
Liam is treated at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where CLIC Sargent has an independent team helping families of children with cancer manage the impact of the illness on their lives.
Faye said of the charity: “CLIC Sargent has been a great support to Liam and our family throughout all of this.
“We’re really happy that the charity and WWE were able to organise this special surprise for our little superstar.”
Liam was diagnosed with a pilocytic astrocytoma brain tumour in May 2015, and had an operation to remove the growth,
Unfortunately the tumour returned in February of this year, and he had major brain surgery.
He was in hospital for three weeks after the second operation, and had a number of side effects, including left-side weakness and mobility issues.
The young fighter remains in good spirits, and is having physiotherapy to help him learn to walk again.
A spokesperson for CLIC Sargent said: “We are so happy that AJ Styles and Randy Orton were able to grant wishes for our children during their UK tour.
“We are thankful for WWE’s ongoing commitment to helping the dreams of children like Liam around the world come true.”
Last year the charity’s care teams at East and West Midlands hospitals supported more than 1,100 children and young people. It supported more than 7,100 young patients across the UK.