Bethany Hamilton

Bethany Meilani Hamilton, born February 8, 1990, is an American professional surfer and writer who survived a 2003 shark attack. Her left arm was bitten off but returned to being a professional surfer. She wrote her own book called Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board in 2004.

While Hamilton was lying on her surfboard stomach-down and talking with her friend Alana, a 14-foot-long (4.3 m) tiger shark attacked her. The Blanchards helped paddle Hamilton back to shore, then Alana's father made a tourniquet out of a rash guard and wrapped it around the stump of her arm then was rushed to Wilcox Memorial Hospital. By the time she arrived there, she had lost over 60% of her blood and was in hypovolemic shock. Hamilton's father, who was scheduled to have knee surgery that same morning, was already there, but she took his place in the operating room with the same doctor.

Hamilton got a custom-made board that was longer and slightly thicker than a standard board and had a handle for her right arm which made it easier to paddle, and she learned to kick more to make up for the loss of her left arm. After Hamilton taught herself to surf with one arm, she returned to surfing on November 26, 2003. It was only 26 days after the shark attack, and she entered her first major competition on January 10, 2004. She now uses standard competitive performance short-boards.