How pro surfer Mick Fanning survived shark attack

PRO surfer Mick Fanning (34) narrowly escaped serious injury or even death on Sunday after a shark attack left the world stunned.

While surfing in the finals of the Jeffrey’s Bay Open, a shark attempted to bite Fanning, who kept a cool head and fought the predator off.

He was rescued by the support teams who were on jet skis and boats nearby, while cameras kept on rolling, capturing the entire debacle.

The shocking footage has left no doubt in viewers’ minds that Fanning was extremely lucky to have escaped unscathed.

Fanning and other surfers were visibly emotional after the incident.

‘I thought: ‘If this thing is going to come for me, I want to have a look at it,’ he said at a press conference in Sydney, Australia yesterday.

His reaction and the video of the incident has gone viral, while Fanning is just relieved to be alive.

Here are four things he did that saved his life:

He fought back

Fanning punched the shark on its back, planting a seed of doubt in its mind. Experts have said that this would scare the shark, making it believe Fanning could have hurt it if it carried on attacking.

He used his surfboard

The shark bit his leash (which keeps the board attached via a cord to the surfer) and not the board directly. The buoyancy of the surfboard made the shark think it had bitten off more than it could chew.

He didn’t thrash around

Fanning didn’t swim and kick madly to get away, instead he attempted to body surf out on the next wave.

Thrashing attracts sharks, as most of their prey thrashes in the water when they start attacking.

He got out of the water quickly

The fast response by support personnel on jet skis was crucial, as the shark didn’t get a second chance to attack.

Fanning has vowed to return to JBay soon, and said the incident did not deter him from surfing.

DID YOU KNOW?

Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.

For news straight to your phone invite us:

BBM – 25A0BF5A or 2B7993C8