4 things Mick Fanning did that saved his life during shark attack

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Australian surfing legend Mick Fanning fights off shark during competition
Footage shows the massive killer's fin emerge from water behind Fanning
34-year-old was knocked off the board in the attack and fought for his life

By Sarah Michael for Daily Mail Australia and Australian Associated Press

Published: 21:45 EST, 19 July 2015 | Updated: 22:07 EST, 19 July 2015

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Three-time world surfing champion Mick Fanning has been labelled both courageous and incredibly lucky to have walked away from a shark attack uninjured.

The 34-year-old Australian punched a shark that attacked him from behind while he was contesting the final of the J-Bay Open at South Africa's Jeffreys Bay on Sunday.

Shark expert Dr Daniel Bucher said Fanning’s survival instinct kicked in when he realised the shark was trying to bite him, and the steps he took ended up saving his life.

The distressing situation could be easily seen from the coast, with footage showing the shark thrashing around

Amazing footage of Australian surfing legend Mick Fanning fighting off a shark has been captured on camera

The three-time world champion was able to get away from the beast by punching it in the back

Shocking moment surfer fights off shark on live TV

HE FOUGHT BACK

Dr Bucher, senior lecturer in marine biology at Southern Cross University, said judging from the footage which showed both the shark’s dorsal fin and tail it would have been three to four metres in length.

‘If you were being attacked by a six metre great white there’s really nothing you can do,’ Dr Bucher told Daily Mail Australia.

‘If it was a great white it would be a fairly young animal. A three or four metre shark would be fairly cautious.’

Dr Bucher said the fact that Fanning fought back would have scared the shark.

‘Once the shark was having a go at him, facing it and trying to fight back is the sort of thing everyone would do instinctively,’ he said.

‘You want to put a bit of doubt in the shark’s mind that if it keeps up the attack you might be able to hurt it.

‘You’re a fairly big size and some sharks would be cautious to take on larger seals.’

Fanning looks to the skies as he recalls the moment he was almost bitten by a shark (right with him is fellow champion Kelly Slater)

Fanning in action during the quarter final round of the JBay Open surfing event on Sunday

Footage shows the shark's fin slowly rise out of the water, before lunging at Fanning, who had to fight for his life

Surfer Mick Fanning speaks immediately after shark attack

Dr Daniel Bucher, senior lecturer in marine biology at Southern Cross University

HE USED HIS SURFBOARD

Fanning said the shark bit the leg rope of his surfboard, which pulled him underwater but meant he could break free from the board.

Dr Bucher said Fanning was lucky that the shark got distracted by the board.

‘More than anything he was lucky the shark got caught in the leg rope, because that got the shark thinking twice,’ he said.

‘The board is still tugging on rope making it look like he got something bigger than he does.’

HE DIDN'T THRASH AROUND

Dr Bucher said Fanning was lucky not to be injured or killed in the shark’s initial attack.

After the shark had swum away, Fanning called out to his fellow Australian and world title rival Julian Wilson who was also in the water to warn him of the danger.

But Dr Bucher said this point in time was crucial to survival, because the shark could return at any moment.

‘The moment of the attack you would be full of adrenaline and you wouldn’t be thinking too much,’ he said.

After his close shave, Fanning was embraced by U.S. surfer Kelly Slater who watched the incident unfold

Fanning's rival in the finals, fellow Australian Julian Wilson (in red), was in the water at the time of the attack

Julian Wilson in tears as he recounts Mick Fanning shark attack

‘The really scary time is where you’re sitting there wondering where it is.

‘It’s a matter of luck I think - it goes away for a little while to see what’s happening, has it injured you.

‘I think after the first attack you have to get out of there while the shark’s having a think. You have to try not to splash around too much or you’ll look like an injured animal.’

HE GOT OUT OF THE WATER QUICKLY

After the attack, water patrol crews sped towards Fanning as he frantically swam to the shore.

Fanning initially had tried to bodysurf a wave, a tactic Dr Bucher said was clever because it minimised splashing.

‘It’s hard to swim fast and not splash. Trying to catch wave in is the best way out,’ he said.

‘He obviously realised jet skis were close enough and it was better to swim to them.

‘Lucky it was an organised event of the highest level so the jet skis were close.’

Fanning described the moment he realised the shark was behind him as terrifying, saying: 'I was waiting for the teeth to come at me.'

Fanning was knocked off his board and battled the beast desperately until he could be hauled into a rescue boat by officials

During one particularly scary moment in the footage, Fanning (pictured far right) can be seen swimming away from his surfboard as he attempts to get away

Footage released by the World Surf League (WSL) shows the shark’s fin emerge from the water before following Fanning as he paddled out of the shallows.

The three-time world champion, who was competing against fellow Australian Julian Wilson in the final, can be seen being knocked off his board before he attempts to use it as a shield to stop the shark biting him.

The clip ends with him being hauled into a rescue boat by officials and brought back to the shore.

Speaking after the incident, Fanning - who was miraculously uninjured and only lost a leg rope in the incident - said: 'It came up and got stuck in my leg rope.

'I instantly just jumped away. It kept coming at my board and I was kicking and screaming.

'I just saw fins. I punched it in the back.'

Commentator Ross Williams said the incident was one of the craziest things he had seen in a competition.

'No one has ever seen anyone attacked in a heat... it was such a scary thing to see him come off his board,' he said.

Wilson (in red) broke down in tears as he described the attack, saying he thought Fanning was 'gone'

Rescuers used jet skis to get into the water and made sure both Fanning and Australian Julian Wilson, who he was competing against, were safe

The pro surfer was comforted by Slater following the horrifying incident that Fanning miraculously escaped

Fanning's manager Ronnie Blakey said he feared the worst as he watched the attack unfold.

'At one point I was sitting on beach and I was thinking we’re watching a three-time world champion die here, that was the reality of the situation,' Mr Blakey told Triple M's The Grill Team.

'At worst I was thinking if he isn't dead maybe he's lost a limb.'

Fanning's rival in the finals, fellow Australian Julian Wilson, was in the water at the time of the attack and broke down in tears as he described watching the incident unfold.

'It came up and he was wrestling it, I saw the whole thing, then I saw he got knocked off his board and then like a little wave popped up and I just thought, he’s gone, he’s gone under,' Wilson said.

'And I felt like I couldnt get there quick enough.'

U.S. surfing champion Kelly Slater shared an emotional embrace with Fanning after the attack, and said he was shocked that the Australian escaped unharmed.

'I'm halfway between crying and laughing because he got so lucky. I'm lost for words to be honest,' Slater said.