A hero lifeguard jumped into action to save a little girl from drowning after she got stuck upside down in her inflatable ring.

The child was paddling in a swimming pool in the Chinese city of Guangzhou when she lost her balance and toppled over in the water.

As she was struggling underwater, the lifeguard jumped in to save her and another man using the pool is also seen quickly swimming over to help.

The girl was shaken but unhurt after the incident and the person in charge of the pool - whose identity was not revealed - later told local media that her parents had left the poolside area for “a while”.