Elizabeth Osborne said she couldn't believe it when she watched the black fin appear behind her son, Mick Fanning, at an event in South Africa.
A surfer's mother has described the terrifying moment she watched a shark attack him live on TV.
Elizabeth Osborne said she couldn’t believe it when a black fin appeared behind her son, Mick Fanning, at a competition in Jeffreys Bay in the Eastern Cape in South Africa on Sunday.
“I jumped up and ran to the TV,” Osborne told INSIDE EDITION. “My instinct was to rescue him.”
She watched helplessly as her son disappeared beneath the surface of the water.
“I couldn't believe what I was seeing,” she said. "He went down... [I] thought we'd lost him.”
But he was able to punch and kick the shark. He could be seen swimming frantically away from the shark and was rescued by a jet-ski.
“I turned around to make sure it wasn't following me,” he said.
Incredibly, his rival Julian Wilson starting swimming towards Fanning after the attack.
Osborne, who was watching from her home in Australia, said people from around the world have reached out to her.
Watch: Man Wrestles a Shark to Shore With His Bare Hands
“It shows me how much he's loved,” she said through tears. “He's a beautiful person.”
Immediately after the attack, Fanning said he wasn't sure he'd get back in the water – but after calming down, he’s changed his tune.
“I’ll surf again,” he said.
Following the close call, organizers of the J-Bay Open, which is part of the 2015 Samsung Galaxy World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour, called off the rest of the competition.
Watch Below: Expert Gives Tips on Protecting Yourself in a Shark Attack
