An 18-year-old Chinese boy who lost nearly half of his body three years ago in the massive Sichuan earthquake has transformed himself as one of the country's top swimmers.

Dai Guohong, then 15, lost both of his legs when the roof on his school fell on him which buried him and his classmates under tones of rubbles. Some 26 of Dai's classmates perished in that quake.

Dai underwent a series of operations to save his life. A local disabled sports coach spotted him and encouraged him to train as a Paralympics swimmer. He is expected to compete in the next Paralympics to be held in London next year.

"I didn't have any professional swimming training before. But doctors said swimming is good for the body, so I went to have a try," he explained.

"I just seemed to take to it because of the freedom it gave me to move. Suddenly I wasn't disabled any more. I can't wait to get to London and show what I can do," added Guohong.