Surfers have balls, especially when they swim in shark-infested waters without a care in the world. They either have a death wish, or have never seen Jaws.
This weekend a clip went viral in which surfer Mick Fanning was attacked by a shark during a live broadcast of the J-Bay Open. Thankfully, he survived without a scratch.
Fanning escaped with a severed leash on his surfboard. He told World Surf League TV that he “punched” the shark in the back to scare it away, reports CNN.
“I had this feeling that something was behind (me), and all of a sudden I felt like I started getting pulled underwater. And then the thing came up and I was on my board and it was right there,” he said.
“I had this thought, ‘What if it comes around for another go at me?'” he said. “Before I knew it, the boat was there. … I can’t believe it, I was tripping out. I’m totally tripping out.”
It is not clear whether there was more than one shark, WSL spokeman Dave Prodan told CNN.
Shark at #JBayOpen. Thankfully, Mick Fanning is unharmed. https://t.co/Y20L1PpTMD
— #JBayOpen (@wsl) July 19, 2015
That was way too close… @Mick_Fanning's severed leash. @wsl pic.twitter.com/W8jyxaGZYc
— Rip Curl (@ripcurl) July 19, 2015