Boy thrown from 10th floor of Tate gallery now practising judo and can blow out candles again, family says

A boy who was thrown from the 10th floor of the Tate Modern art gallery in London is practising a gentle form of judo and adapted archery as his condition improves, his family has said.

The French youngster, who was six at the time of the attack, suffered life-changing injuries including a bleed on the brain and broken bones from the 100ft (30m) fall in August 2019.

Autistic teenager Jonty Bravery was living in supported accommodation at the time but was allowed out unsupervised when he targeted the boy.

Bravery intended to select and kill someone, a court was later told.

He was convicted of attempted murder in 2020 and jailed for 15 years.

Posting on a GoFundMe page, which has raised nearly €400,000 (£354,000) for the youngster’s care and rehabilitation, his family said that he was increasingly taking part in physical activity as part of his treatment.

They said: “Since September, we have returned to Paris several times to consult specialists because we have to monitor the development of our son’s back, shoulder and hip, given his growth.

“We will now have to do this check every six months, to make sure that he does not need a corset again. Similarly, some new operations may unfortunately become necessary.

“In prevention, specialists recommend appropriate physical activity. This is why we have registered our son for equine therapy and the swimming pool with his specialised educator.

“And the latter also accompanies him, since the end of October, to judo. She does it very gently and does not let go of an inch on the tatami, of course.

“From time to time, we also take him for adapted archery. Our son has always loved sports, he is delighted to do all this.”

Explaining that the youngster was also improving with his breathing, they wrote: “We have also found a new speech therapist, and thanks to her, our little knight has made considerable progress in swallowing and breathing.

“He’s able to blow out candles again, he hardly makes any more wrong turns when he drinks liquids, and he’s starting to keep the rhythm of the songs better.

“He is also pursuing orthoptics and his sight is improving further, as is his memory thanks to cognitive remediation sessions with his neuropsychologist.

“He remembers more and more things he did or was told during the day.”

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The family said that the boy had “very positive” school results, and added: “Our son’s teacher and guide are both very happy with his progress: he manages to follow in class despite his difficulties, because he is extremely courageous and hardworking.

“Thus, despite the fact that he still has to automate the writing of letters, he nevertheless manages to improve in spelling and to obtain very good marks in dictation, which he is very proud of.

“Moreover, thanks to all his mobility progress (balance, left arm, muscle strengthening, etc.), he is increasingly able to play alone at home and in the hospital.

“This is a huge step towards his autonomy, even if he is still very dependent for very simple daily tasks (tuck his T-shirt into his pants, cut his meat, wash his hair, etc.).”