He starts year 5 at Wallsend South Public School in 2010, plays rugby league, and is good at plugging into YouTube.

Justin was the first child born to Debbie and Greg Kinniard, of Rankin Park, at 2.31am on New Year's Day, 2000, at John Hunter Hospital.

While he won the race, Justin was running late.

"Justin was due on December 21," his father Greg said at the time.

But yesterday his mother Debbie described him as a happy little fellow, full of energy and enthusiasm.

"He's got a good group of friends that he's had since kindergarten, and he's very active," Mrs Kinniard said.

During the past decade much has changed, and not just for Justin, who welcomed a sister, Tess, into the world in August, 2002.

Technological advances include digital cameras, mobile phones, iPods and Blackberrys.

The first photos of Justin were taken on a film camera and developed at a nearby camera shop or chemist.

These days the family owns a digital camera and their favourite photos appear on a digital photo frame.

Both Greg and Debbie are mobile phone and laptop users, Debbie has a Facebook page, and the kids use a computer at school. While his parents would have walked to school at his age, Justin gets picked up.