Sophie Delezio's exciting news
Sophie Delezio, the teenage girl who miraculously survived two horrific car accidents as a child, has defied the odds to get behind the wheel.
Delezio, now 17, captured the hearts of the nation as she was left fighting for her life at the age of two, when she was trapped beneath a car that had crashed into her day care centre.
She suffered third degree burns to 85 per cent of her body and was placed in a coma for three months.
But after her remarkable recovery, disaster struck Delezio again in May 2006.
She was struck by a car again, flying 18 metres from her wheelchair. She suffered a heart attack, a broken jaw, a broken shoulder, a tear to her lung and other injuries. She also lost sense of smell.
But again she defied all the odds and survived.
And now at 17, Delezio is getting behind the wheel to learn how to drive.
In an exclusive interview with Woman’s Day, Delezio said she’s not letting her childhood trauma deter her from driving. She’s already clocked up the required 120 hours for her NSW driver’s licence in just eight months by driving to and from school on weekdays.
She also drives around Sydney on weekends with one of her parents, Ron and Carolyn, or a carer.
“I'm in heaven as long as I'm the one in the driver's seat and in control. I just love to drive. I enjoy the way it makes me feel... free,” she said.
Delezio is now in her final year of high school and plans to study abroad in the UK next year.
After years of ordeals, she said she’s here to “live life”.
“I’m always telling myself I need to crack down and study, but I’m also here to live life, and the busier I am, the better!” she told Woman’s Day.
And Delezio has proved it again and again.
Last year, she went skydiving in Queenstown, New Zealand, which she described as “one of the coolest experiences” of her life.