Surfer Kelly Slater photobombed by a shark? See the video

The world’s top-ranked surfers are in Western Australia participating in the Margaret River Pro.

Sharks a hot topic in the region because of a fairly recent spate of fatal attacks on surfers and swimmers, which led to a controversial government-sponsored ongoing shark cull.

 

So it’s understandable that when an odd-shaped object appeared in the face of a wave videotaped with a GoPro camera worn by Kelly Slater, some wondered whether the 11-time world champ had been photobombed by an apex predator.

We’ve attached the video and three screen grabs that basically prove only that something, or someone, was in the wave as Slater was getting barreled.

Writes Surfer magazine: “While there may be a perfectly reasonable explanation for the blob that appears at 0:17, the prevalence, and controversy, of sharks in Western Australia spreads paranoia like wildfire, prompting many to believe this is a shark photobomb of Kelly Slater’s wave at The Box.

“At first, we thought the surfer at 0:06 explained the blob, but upon further examination, there are no limbs or contrasting black wetsuit to what could be a white surfboard. What do you think the mysterious object in the face of the wave is?”

Any shark experts care to respond?

–Pete Thomas

Comments

[drudown]

Not sure, but looks like a juvenile White shark going in the opposite direction of Slater.

White sharks frequent this part of the coastal ecosystem.

Aside from the clear White belly, not sure how a human would be in that position anyway, e.g., you duck dive through the wave- not on a parallel trajectory as seen here.

[Will Dewey]

hahahaha most human with surfboard like shark I've ever seen

[Anderson Alan]

Esse cara é demais quando amamos o que fazemos não existe medo.

[Steve Redding]

I have spent years scuba diving with sharks. This is definitely a shark you can by the movement and the silver top with a white bottom.
the glimpse that we get of the shark it appears to be a juvenile white pointer, given the apparent girth, colourings and location of the video. However that is debatable.
If you think this is a ray or person you're dreaming unfortunately.

[Ray Dotti]

Looks like a manta ray

[Busyb]

It is clearly a surfer (even if I had to check multiple times), you can see the hand (or foot) at the end of the suit, and the white seen is of course the board with cavitation bubbles around, so the aspect is radically changed and give a different volume.

[jon]

Looks like a hammerhead shark

[Chris Hartzell]

This is not a shark. There has been a lot of discussion and people have examined it. There is a surfer at the beginning of the video getting ready to punch through the wave. As he punches the wave Kelly goes by him while he is inside. Even in the thumbnail you can see where the surfer dove in. Additionally, after many speculations after the video was frozen and images blown up clearly showing a surfer diving into the wave prior, someone involved in the video was contacted and confirmed there were numerous surfers and photographers in the water and this exact type of shot was caught multiple times. The video was reviewed on a high-end HD monitor with high frame rates and there were multiple angles all confirming this was the surfer at the beginning of the video. Videos from other angles have also confirmed this was the surfer and have even showed the surfer on the back of the wave after Kelly passes him. There is no shark, sorry. Sometimes a UFO IS just a plane.

[bdz]

Its the guy paddling out ya numpties !

[brodie]

at 0.17 and 0.18 frame by frame in some of them you can make out what appears to be a black eye and a jaw line

[Sandy]

It's just the surfer from the first few seconds of the video. Stop freaking out.

[Parker]

its a dick dragger!! c'mon!

[Martin Raggett]

It's a Ray! Obvious when see the video.

[brian matters]

i see clearly his eye and face so yes not a really big great white but atleast 3 m.

[Matt Scates]

yep looks like a great white...depends where he is surfing if its Western Australia may well be a great white you can see the fin as he drops into the wave triangular like a great white...

[Grahame]

I'm pretty positive that it is a juvenile great white. Just before he drops into the barrel you can see the fin breach the surface of the water.
Also the markings and colouring look very similar to that of a great white. The shape at the front, the white under body and what looks to be like gill slits just before what looks like a pectoral fin.
I'm convinced that it's a great white having a surf with the world's greatest surfer.