The boy with a Dolphin Tale: Amazing moment British eight-year-old who lost legs to meningitis used prosthetics to swim alongside dolphin from hit film with artificial flipper



Cieran Kelso, 8, lost both legs below the knee after he developed meningitis as a baby

He wanted to swim with his friends but struggled to balance in the water

His family raised the money for special prosthetics fitted with flippers

He recently swam with Winter, the tail-less dolphin in Florida

Cieran is Winter's biggest fan after seeing him in the movie 'Dolphin Tale'

An eight-year-old double amputee who learned to swim with prosthetic flippers has taken to the pool with the tail-less dolphin that inspired him.



Cieran Kelso flew to Florida from England for the rare opportunity to swim with Winter, a dolphin at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and star of the movie 'Dolphin Tale', t hat uses a prosthetic tail.

It was something the water baby could relate with. After losing both his legs to meningitis when he was just one, Cieran also uses custom-made prosthetic flippers to swim.

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Inspirational: Amputee Cieran Kelso, 8, this month fulfilled his long-held dream of swimming with Winter the tail-less dolphin at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Florida. Cieran was obsessed with Winter after seeing her in the movie 'Dolphin Tale'

Beautiful: Before they swam together earlier this month, double amputee Cieran Kelso, 8, was inspired by Winter the tail-less dolphin who learned to swim with a prosthetic tail

'His first words when he saw the film was, 'Winter's disabled just like me,' said Cieran's father, Gary Kelso.

'There are some pretty raw feelings that go into seeing Cieran swim with the dolphin.'

The family, from Northwich, in Cheshire, kept the trip a secret from the boy until August 16th when they were on the flight to Florida.



The flight attendants announced the trip was a surprise visit to Winter's home, organised by local tourism officials at Visit St Pete/Clearwater.

Cieran's dream had come true.



On the day of his swim, trainer Cammie Zodrow urged Cieran to tap Winter, the signal to raise her tail.



'You guys are best friends now,' Zodrow told Cieran, whose smile grew wider.

He then held onto Winter's fin and swam beside her, swimming in circles and backward for several laps.



For more than an hour, Winter and Cieran - at first alone with the trainer, then joined by his five-year-old sister, Layla-Eve, and Winter's 'sister' Hope - swam in the tank.

Cieran's stepmother, Gemma Kelso, 29, told MailOnline: 'I think he was in shock when he found out he could swim with her.

'He thought he would only be able to meet her - he was just the second visitor to be allowed to swim with her as well.

Cieran held onto Winter's fin and swam beside her, swimming in circles for more than an hour. His sister, Layla-Eva, five, also swam with Winter

Cieran's stepmother Gemma Kelso, 29, told MailOnline: 'I think he was in shock when he found out he could swim with her. It was so overwhelming.' Cieran is pictured feeding Winter

'It was so overwhelming. He had dreamed of it for so long.'



She added: 'On the film he saw himself in the dolphin. He can swim like her.

'He felt like he was like Winter. He had never seen an injured animal like that before.

'He said that she was his friend, he identified with her.

Winter lost her tail in a an accident involving a crab trap. She was fitted with a prosthetic by staff at Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Cieran felt he could associate with her because her tail is like his prosthetic flippers

Cieran's stepmother said that he views Winter as a friend and that it is now his ambition to go back to Florida to work with her

'There is a massive bond. You could see the way they were in the water together - they were very calm together.

'Since we got back he is calmer and more content in himself. His dream job is now to go back and look after Winter - he no longer wants to be a train driver!'



Cieran said he was Winter's biggest fan and he could have swum with the dolphin 'for a million hours'.

Dream come true: Cieran Kelso sits with Winter the tail-less dolphin (left) and Hope in the dolphin's tank at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium after swimming with Winter

A family affair: Cieran Kelso, 8, with his father Gary, stepmother Gemma, his siblings and Winter the dolphin at Clearwater Marine Aquarium, in Clearwater, Florida

'It was greater than great,' he said after his swim.

Planning for the visit took about a year, during which Cieran's parents struggled to keep the process a secret.



Cieran was just hours from death after he was struck down with meningitis as a baby.

Despite pulling through he had to have both legs amputated below the knee and also lost the tips of most of his fingers.



Tragic: Cieran Kelso's legs were amputated and he lost his fingertips after contracting meningococcal septicaemia when he was one. Before his parents bought him a new pair of limbs, he was given prosthetics on the NHS but they didn't fit properly

He was later fitted with false legs and given a wheelchair to help him get around but he desperately wanted to swim with his friends.

That's when his father Gary and stepmother Gemma spent months fundraising on his behalf.



They raised enough money to pay for a custom-made pair of legs that could be used in water.

Paul Leishman at the Leeds branch of The London Prosthetics Clinic also made him a pair of flippers that attach to the ends of the feet.

Making a splash: Cieran Kelso struggled to balance in the water before he was fitted with new limbs. His step-mum Gemma and dad Gary raised $18,600 to buy him legs that fit and can be worn all day

Waterbaby: Cieran is now speedy in the swimming pool thanks to his new prosthetic legs and custom-made flippers

'Cieran loves swimming and has been having swimming lessons for just over a year but he couldn't propel himself through the water or stay afloat as easily as everyone else,' Gemma said.

'As soon as Cieran first wore the flippers it was incredible the speed he could travel through the water, his instructor even had to swim with him to keep up.

'We want Cieran to see that even though his legs were taken away by his meningitis he can still follow his dreams and be like his friends, just sometimes we have to make slight adaptations to aid him along the way.'