--- title: Jeffreys Bay Surfer Safety Mulled After Shark Attack on Mick Fanning description: The attack on Mick Fanning is just one of several shark incidents from Jeffreys Bay in the run-up to or during the WSL competition. canonical: https://time.com/3965467/mick-fanning-shark-attack-jeffreys-bay-safety/ author: Alissa Greenberg article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-21T08:11:49.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T08:37:16.790Z article:section: Sports og:title: Should Surfer Mick Fanning Have Even Been in the Water? og:description: Questions raised about the safety of Jeffreys Bay, S.A. as a surfing venue og:url: https://time.com/3965467/mick-fanning-shark-attack-jeffreys-bay-safety/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6cdd770034ab716/69885bb3428a9e521bcce425/481397146.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: J-Bay Open Surfing og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Should Surfer Mick Fanning Have Even Been in the Water? twitter:description: Questions raised about the safety of Jeffreys Bay, S.A. as a surfing venue twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6cdd770034ab716/69885bb3428a9e521bcce425/481397146.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Mick Fanning Fended Off a Shark, but Should He Have Even Been in the Water? > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [Alissa Greenberg](https://time.com/author/alissa-greenberg/) ## Alissa Greenberg Jul 21, 2015 8:11 AM UTC  Mick Fanning of Australia is attacked by a shark at the J-Bay Open in South Africa on July 19, 2015 Mick Fanning of Australia is attacked by a shark at the J-Bay Open in South Africa on July 19, 2015 WSL/Getty Images by [Alissa Greenberg](https://time.com/author/alissa-greenberg/) ## Alissa Greenberg Jul 21, 2015 8:11 AM UTC Beyond spiking the adrenaline of a global viewing public, the ordeal suffered by Mick Fanning — who was [attacked](http://time.com/3963763/surfing-shark-attack/) by a shark on live TV during a World Surfing League (WSL) competition at Jeffreys Bay, South Africa, this week — is also making some wonder if he should have been in the water there at all. The area is a “known hot spot for sharks,” [reports](http://www.news.com.au/sport/sports-life/mick-fanning-shark-attack-raises-questions-about-the-future-of-surf-contest-in-south-africa/story-fno61i58-1227450952639) News Corp.’s Australian news portal, news.com.au, calling on the WSL to “consider the danger of placing its athletes in a work environment where they can become a wild animal’s lunch.” It turns out that Fanning’s near miss is just one of several shark incidents from Jeffreys Bay in the run-up to or during the event, news.com.au says. “It’s well documented, there’s been plenty of attacks here at Jeffreys,” world champion Kelly Slater told the outlet. “Today I probably thought about it 30 times.” WSL commentator Strider Wasilewski also told of his escape from “a 15 ft.-plus great white” in the run-up to the competition. In comments to news.com.au about the incident, WSL commissioner Kieran Perrow did not seem to hint at any plans to move future competitions. “Everyone loves Jeffreys Bay,” he said. “We come here not just for the surf but for the culture and the people and what this place means to everybody. That may take some time — for \[Fanning\] especially — to reconnect.” Read the rest of the article [here](http://www.news.com.au/sport/sports-life/mick-fanning-shark-attack-raises-questions-about-the-future-of-surf-contest-in-south-africa/story-fno61i58-1227450952639). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3965467/mick-fanning-shark-attack-jeffreys-bay-safety/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3965467/mick-fanning-shark-attack-jeffreys-bay-safety/"},"headline":"Mick Fanning Fended Off a Shark, but Should He Have Even Been in the Water?","datePublished":"2015-07-21T08:11:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T08:37:16.790Z","description":"After the attack on Fanning, questions are being raised about the safety of Jeffreys Bay, South Africa, as a pro-surfing venue","url":"https://time.com/3965467/mick-fanning-shark-attack-jeffreys-bay-safety/","keywords":["Surfing","South Africa","animals","Accident","shark","shark attack","beach"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6cdd770034ab716/69885bb3428a9e521bcce425/481397146.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alissa Greenberg","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alissa-greenberg/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb6cdd770034ab716/69885bb3428a9e521bcce425/481397146.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"J-Bay Open Surfing","caption":"J-Bay Open Surfing","creditText":"WSL/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/surfing/","name":"Surfing"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3965467/mick-fanning-shark-attack-jeffreys-bay-safety/","name":"Mick Fanning Fended Off a Shark, but Should He Have Even Been in the Water?"}}]}] ```