Achmat hassiem biography of albert

Africa Today podcasts. Achmat Hassiem used to be a lifeguard. Breaking bone. Around the BBC. In other projects. Wikidata item. South African Paralympic swimmer. Medal record. Personal life [ edit ]. Swimming [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. The New Age. Archived from the original on 22 April Retrieved 26 August Deborah Salamone, like Achmat, was also attacked by a shark and is a member of the Pew Environment Group , explained, " If a group like us can see the value in saving sharks, can't everyone?

Achmat, Deborah and their colleagues from the Pew Environment Group visited the United Nations last year in an effort to lobby for new protections for sharks. Currently, international restrictions are in place for only three shark species: basking, whale and white sharks. Paul de Gelder of Australia who lost his right hand and right lower leg in a shark attack explained the group's perspective, " Do we have the right to drive any animal to the brink of extinction before any action is taken?

Regardless of what an animal does according to its base instincts of survival, it has its place in our world. We have an obligation to protect and maintain the natural balance of our delicate ecosystems. I saw this triangle becoming bigger and bigger and bigger," he says. Anxious to identify this "massive triangle", Hassiem peered below the surface.

I couldn't believe how big this thing was. Hassiem knew the shark would dive before launching an attack from below.

Achmat hassiem biography of albert

Fearing he could be about to witness the shark breach with his brother in its jaws, his first thought was to distract the animal's attention. But as it changed course, the shark also dived. And as the lifeguards plucked Hassiem's brother out of the ocean, the great white targeted a fresh prey. I'm screaming, the guys on the [dinghy] catch a glimpse of what is happening, and absolute terror hits the skies.

For a moment Hassiem hoped he might somehow be able to throw his leg over the animal and get on to its back, and that "the shark would just give me a lift to the shoreline, drop me off, and that would be our parting". I didn't feel it bite down at all.