When sports-mad youngster Zac Mathews was the first pre-schooler to cross the line at Gosfield School Race For Life, it was hard to imagine that three years ago, the boy was lying in his hospital bed fighting for his life.
Zac, 9, whose mum, Philippa, is head of Gosfield's Prep School, was taken into Colchester General Hospital suffering from pneumonia in 2012.
However, unbeknown to doctors and his worried parents, he was already showing symptoms of having developed Kawasaki disease - a rare condition affecting just eight in 100,000 children.
Philippa said it was heartbreaking to see Zac lose half his body weight and watch his skin begin to peel away.
Zac then continued his recovery at the family home in Clacton.
Zac signed-up for the Race For Life For Schools the day details were announced.
He was the first to cross the finishing line in the Pre School category.
**See Friday's Halstead Gazette for the full story
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