December 11, 2008
A schoolboy archer has had a 'miracle' escape after being accidentally shot through the eye by a team-mate.
The crossbow bolt pierced Liu Cheong's eye socket, travelled through his head and lodged in the back of his skull.
The 11-year-old only survived because the 16in dart missed his brain.
"If the bolt had been shot with just a bit more force, it would have come out the back of his head," said medics at Jida Hospital in Changchun, eastern China.
Surgeons chipped away at parts of the boy's skull for more than four hours to remove the bolt, which had sunk more than four inches into his head.
They even had to cut away part of the shaft just to get the boy in the CT scanner.
Doctors then had to avoid damaging optic nerves or brain tissue during the unusual procedure.
"It is a miracle he survived the accident," said one medic.
Doctors have warned his parents he still faces a risk of infection and even further operations.
Teachers at Liu's Jiutai City school believe the accident happened when the young archers were practising on their own.
The team-mate who shot him - a 13-year-old girl called Yan Shin - is being treated for shock.