Gymnastics success for Hull boy Max Clark who lost leg in crash

Max Clark is preparing for the semi-finals of the British schools competition

A boy who had to have part of his leg amputated after being hit by a motorbike has reached the semi-finals of a national gymnastics contest.

Max Clark, from Hull, was on a day out with his family when he was nine years old when the hit-and-run incident took place in the city in May 2020.

His injuries were so severe that he had to lose some of his left leg.

Now, with the help of a prosthetic limb, Max has returned to his trampolining and winning competitions.

Max, who is now 12, said it was difficult at first and he had to "try harder" than ever as he prepared to get further in the British schools competition.

"It's like my life basically. I've done it all my life, it's just so fun and I like doing new tricks and stuff," he said.

Paul Smith, Max's coach at his gymnastics club, said the boy's progress had been "fantastic".

Mr Smith said: "The last competition we went to, which was the first round of the schools, a few of the coaches there from other clubs came up to me and were so complimentary.

"They were really impressed with how good he is on the trampoline."

Coach Paul Smith says Max's trampoline performances have attracted praise from other teams

Max's mother Kirsty Clark said that despite his injury he was keen to get back to his trampolining.

"He started gymnastics when he was four, so he's put quite a lot of work in," she said.

"He never really stopped. He had about five months off, then back to the gym."

Max is now in line to represent his county and is expected to compete in national events.

He said his progress had been helped by his fellow gymnasts at the club.

"They help me a lot, they root for me. They make me feel like the accident never happened."

Jerome Cawkwell was jailed for three years in June 2020 after admitting causing serious injury to Max by dangerous driving.

Hull Crown Court heard Cawkwell was travelling "at a crazy speed" with a defective front brake and fled the scene after the crash.