'I never thought Harley could enjoy sports like skiing'

BOY WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT HITTING THE SLOPES

- By SAMANTHA LEATHERS

Visually-impaired Harley Chang on the Adaptive Snowsports Aldershot slope, Aldershot, with his mum Geni

AS the Winter Paralympics kicks off, a 10-year-old Guildford boy is defying the odds of his visual impairment and hitting the slopes.

Harley Chang can now ski independently despite needing a white cane in day-to-day life.

His mum Genie, an avid snowboarder herself, never believed her son would be able to enjoy sports like this.

She said: "I thought it would never be possible to enjoy sports like skiing when I first found out that Harley was blind, and to hear that there was a club that welcomed all disabilities was such a joy."

Harley was diagnosed at just four months old with septo-optic dysplasia at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital.

The rare condition affects his optic nerves and has left him visually impaired with no light perception.