A water photographer has been bitten by a shark or seal, sending him to hospital and sparking a red alert at the New Zealand Pro World Surf League event.
Australian Ed Sloane suffered puncture wounds to an ankle and had a flipper ripped off in the attack. As of Monday afternoon, it remained unclear which sea creature was responsible. The wounds are minor, and Sloane was reported to be in good spirits.
A code red was called immediately after the attack, and the men's semi-final between Brazilians Yago Dora and Italo Ferreira was put on hold for a couple of hours. The incident comes 11 years after Australian great Mick Fanning fought off a shark during his final at the South African J-Bay Pro.
“It was our beloved water photographer, Ed,” said WSL commissioner Renato Hickel. “Thank God, he’s in good spirits, he’s well considering what happened, minor, small puncture wounds.”
When competition resumed, Ferreira defeated Dora, and Hawaiian five-time world champion Carissa Moore beat American Sawyer Lindblad in the women's final. Ferreira then ended the day's competition by beating Australian Morgan Cibilic in the men's decider.
Dora had produced a perfect 10-wave score in Sunday's quarter-finals, but Ferreira dominated on Monday and has taken over the world No. 1 ranking. “Oh really - that’s good. But it’s a long year, it’s a long journey and there’s a lot of work behind (this),” Ferreira said when told he had taken top spot. “Step by step, it’s just incredible.”
It was the first event win for Moore since she returned to competition this year as a wildcard, following the birth of her daughter Olena. Moore had Olena in her arms as she was carried up the beach after winning the final. “It’s better than I could have dreamed. It means so much to me,” Moore said. “When I walked away two years ago, I didn’t know if I would get this feeling back.”
Moore dedicated the win to surfer and filmmaker Greg Browning, who died last year. “He is the most spectacular human I’ve ever met and he’s the example we all should strive to be,” Moore said.
It was a breakthrough event for Cibilic, who has returned to the championship tour after several years of inconsistent form. “I guess this just proves to myself that I’m back. I’m going to try to stay here and hopefully put up a few more good performances this year — over the moon,” the Australian said. Cibilic started the day's competition by beating American Griffin Colapinto to reach the final.
