PREMATURE baby Gabrielle Idle-Beevers spent the first three weeks of her life in the special care baby unit at Barnsley Hospital.
Her parents were warned if she survived she could have learning difficulties and special needs.
But nine years later Gabrielle is proving all those predictions wrong - and she is already a champion swimmer.
A member of the City of Leeds swimming club, Gabrielle is ranked in the top five in Yorkshire that’s after taking part in her first county championships.
Gabrielle swam her way to two silver medals, two fourth places and one fifth in just one day of competition.
She started swimming when she was just two. Her granddad was not physically able to play with her in the park so he took her swimming instead.
She now travels to Leeds to train four times a week.
Her proud mum Nicki, of Bence Lane, Darton, said: “She did so well at the county championships, she is a lot smaller than many of the other nine-year-olds she was competing against, but that did not deter her.
“She is a very determined individual.
“When I look back at the times when she was in hospital and we thought we were going to lose her and then look at her today, it’s quite awe-inspiring.
“It just goes to show if someone is a fighter, no matter what the odds, they can achieve remarkable things.”
