Just six months ago Danial Jones' parents feared the worst after he was hit by a car.
The 10-year-old suffered severe breaks to his legs as well as a broken collar bone following the collision in Caernarfon, Gwynedd.
He was rushed to Alder Hey Hospital by Wales Air Ambulance before undergoing emergency surgery and had a metal rod inserted in his leg.
But in a remarkable turnaround at the weekend he was among hundreds taking part in the annual Race for Life for Cancer Research UK in Caernarfon's Parc Coed Helen.
He was alongside his mum Ruth Thomas, who said the 5km race was a massive milestone for her football-mad son.
Speaking to North Wales Live , Ruth said: "We are grateful he's alive and we are grateful he can walk. We just keep moving forward and being grateful for what we have in our lives."
Ruth added that on the day of Danial's accident she was actually caught in a line of traffic on her way home from work unaware that it was her son who was involved.
When she managed to get home her daughter Enfys, 12, was "looking lost" in the front garden of their home and a stranger told Ruth to go to the accident scene.
The teen who's achieved her dream to become a cheerleader even though she's only got one leg
Ruth said: "I didn't realise the queue I was in was because Danial had been hit. A stranger told me. There was a crowd of people and the air ambulance was there."
With Danial's dad Eurwin, she stayed at her son's bedside as doctors fought to repair his broken legs.
He was in a wheelchair for around two months but Ruth praised the consultant and staff at Alder Hey, where Danial stayed for a month, and the staff at Ysbyty Gwynedd who coaxed him back onto his feet through gruelling physiotherapy.
She added: "The community in Bontnewydd has been so supportive to us."
His dream is to kick a football again with his local team, which is run by his dad.
However Danial has another operation to go through to remove the metal rod from his leg first.
Ruth said: "He's not allowed to play football, which has been hard as he's a massive Liverpool fan, but that's what he would love to do."
