12. The Rodney Fox Attack makes history.
In 1963, Rodney Winston Fox made history in the most painful way imaginable. The South African conservationist survived a full-on attack by a great white shark. He defied the odds to live to tell the tale of coming face-to-face with nature’s most fearsome predator. What’s more, he went on to become a world expert in shark behavior and, far from bearing a grudge for his near-fatal attack, is now a leading advocate for keeping sharks safe, including great whites.
It was in December of 1963 and Fox was spearfishing in the waters of his native South Africa. Perhaps attracted by the blood of the fish he had speared, a great white shark appeared and was hungry. The shark attacked Fox. Rather than taking a small bite out of one of his limbs, as sharks often do, it focused its attack on his torso. Every rib on his left-hand-side was crushed. His abdomen was ripped open and his spleen exposed. Additionally, one hand was completely shredded as a result of his attempts to fight off the great white.
Luckily, his fellow competitors managed to pull Fox onto a boat and stop him bleeding to death. He needed 462 stitches after the attack – an incident that’s been labelled as the ‘worst non-fatal shark attack in history’. Before long, however, Fox was back in the water. He designed the first-ever shark cage and for more than 40 years has been a leading marine conservationist. He even lobbies on behalf of great white sharks. Despite his own horrific experience – an experience that has been the subject of numerous articles and documentaries – he believes sharks and humans can get along, even in the ocean.