- Fight back. Playing dead doesn’t work.
- Use your gear first: board, fins, speargun, anything. Keep it between you and the shark.
- Bare hands last: go for the eyes and gills, then the nose.
- Get out of the water the moment it lets go, and press hard on any bleeding.
- You won’t overpower it. The aim is to make it let go.
Men have a habit of wondering whether they could beat an animal in a fight. We looked at the man-versus-chimp fight that never happened. Sharks are a more practical question: plenty of Australians paddle, swim, surf and dive every week in water shared with animals that might consider us a food source. As a clearance diver in my early life, sharks played heavily on my mind, especially in zero-vis water. In the “bin”, the common area, we’d talk about it for hours. Stab it, poke it, everyone had an opinion, but no real idea.
And sharks have been hard to ignore. Five people have been killed by sharks in Australia this year, the latest a swimmer at Sorrento Beach in Perth on 18 September. On 1 November a shark sighting stopped the swim at the Noosa Triathlon. And in August, Coogee survivor Leah Stewart told 60 Minutes it was like “fighting a dinosaur”. Fellow clearance diver Paul de Gelder was rag-dolled by a bull shark.
So, could you beat a shark in a fight? No. But you can survive one, and three people who did tell us how.
Leah Stewart threw a left hook at a great white
On 13 June, Leah Stewart, a 34-year-old teacher and mother, was finishing a morning swim at Coogee Beach in Sydney when a great white of around 3.5 metres attacked her, inside the flags and less than 30 metres from shore. A champion paddleboarder and another bystander dragged her out (The New Daily).
In her first interview, on 60 Minutes, she said it all happened “in slow motion”. With the shark’s mouth close to her face she threw “a left hook”, and asked herself, “Which limb am I willing to lose?” (The Guardian, via the Irish Examiner).
She survived. Her left arm was amputated, she spent weeks in intensive care and, by late August, had reportedly had 11 operations (The New Daily).
It’s tempting to turn this into a story about toughness. It isn’t. Stewart didn’t knock out a shark. She survived one, and fighting back was part of how.
Paul de Gelder learned how unfair the fight is
If you want to know how much human strength counts against a shark, Paul de Gelder is as close to a controlled experiment as you’ll get. In February 2009 he was a 31-year-old Royal Australian Navy clearance diver, swimming on his back on the surface of Sydney Harbour during a counter-terrorism exercise when a bull shark came up from below and took his right hand and right leg (InsideHook).
He fought. His left hand couldn’t reach the shark’s eye, so he went for the nose. The shark shook him and took him under (People). Then it let go. He surfaced, his team pulled him into the boat, and he lost both limbs but lived.
Nobody would call de Gelder unfit. He was an elite military diver, and against a big bull shark, his strength barely registered. “It was like it was all muscle,” he told me in an interview several years ago. His advice now, as a shark advocate and Shark Week presenter, is to push the shark’s nose away rather than punch it (LADbible).
Mick Fanning punched it in the back
In July 2015, three-time world champion Mick Fanning was sitting in the line-up in the final of the J-Bay Open in South Africa when a shark came up behind him, live on television. He was knocked off his board and kicked and punched at it. “I punched it in the back,” he said afterwards (AP, via Boston 25). His leg rope snapped, he swam, and the rescue boats got to him. He wasn’t bitten.
Did Mick Fanning beat a shark? About as much as you beat a closing train door by getting through it. What he did was fight, make space and get out, which is the whole game.
How to survive a shark attack
Australian authorities give the same advice (Victorian Fisheries Authority):
- Don’t play dead. Fight back.
- Use your equipment first: surfboard, fins, camera, speargun. Keep it between you and the shark.
- If it comes to hands, go for the eyes and gills, which are the most sensitive. The nose is a last resort, and it puts your hand next to the teeth.
- Get out of the water the second you have the chance. You’re not there to win.
- Stop the bleeding: firm pressure on the wound, and get help to call an ambulance.
Fighting back doesn’t flip an off switch. De Gelder hit the shark and it kept going. It’s about being hard work for long enough to get loose. Sometimes that works. Sometimes it doesn’t.
How to avoid a shark attack
The odds are already on your side, and you can shift them further (SharkSmart NSW):
- Swim between the red and yellow flags at patrolled beaches.
- Stay out at dawn, dusk and night, when sharks feed.
- Avoid murky water, and stay away from schools of baitfish or diving birds.
- Swim, surf and dive with someone, not alone.
- Check the SharkSmart app or your state’s alerts before you go in.
- Spearfishing? Get your catch out of the water fast: three of this year’s five deaths were spearfishers.
Swimming in the ocean this summer? Our ocean swims calendar and stinger season guide cover the rest of what’s in the water.
Shark attacks in Australia in 2026
Fatal shark attacks in Australia in 2026, as of 8 November (list of fatal shark attacks in Australia, from the Australian Shark-Incident Database). Non-fatal bites, including Leah Stewart’s, aren’t listed.
| Date | Who | What and where | Shark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Sep | Greg O’Neill, 63 | swimming, Sorrento Beach, Perth (WA) | white shark |
| 6 Jun | Daniel Turpin, 35 | spearfishing, Michaelmas Island, Albany (WA) | white shark |
| 24 May | Michael Jensz, 39 | spearfishing, Kennedy Shoal, Great Barrier Reef (Qld) | bull shark |
| 16 May | Steven Mattaboni, 38 | spearfishing, Horseshoe Reef, Rottnest Island (WA) | white shark |
| 18 Jan | Nico Antic, 12 | swimming, Shark Beach, Vaucluse, Sydney Harbour (NSW) | bull shark |
So, could a guy beat a shark?
No, but you might, with a bit of luck, get away. Could an average bloke overpower a big bull, tiger or great white shark in open water? No. An elite Navy diver hit one and couldn’t stop it.
Could a human fight one off? Yes. Leah Stewart did, Paul de Gelder did, and Mick Fanning did on live television. That’s not proof we’re stronger than sharks. It’s proof that when the alternative is being eaten, fighting back matters.
Against a chimp, don’t get in the cage. Against a shark, don’t pick the fight. But if the shark has already picked it, start swinging.
Shark attack FAQ
What should you do in a shark attack?
Fight back with whatever you have, keep your board or gear between you and the shark, target the eyes and gills if you have to use your hands, and get out of the water as soon as it lets go (Victorian Fisheries Authority).
Should you punch a shark in the nose?
Only if it’s all you can reach. The eyes and gills are more sensitive. Paul de Gelder tried for the nose and it didn’t stop the shark; his advice now is to push the nose away rather than punch it (LADbible).
Could you beat a shark in a fight?
No, not if ‘beat’ means overpower. A big shark is far stronger in the water than any man. But people do fight sharks off: Leah Stewart, Paul de Gelder and Mick Fanning all fought back and lived.
Do most people survive shark attacks?
Most shark bites in Australia aren’t fatal, but the deaths come in clusters: five people were killed in 2026 by early November (list of fatal shark attacks in Australia). Fast first aid on the beach, pressure on the wound and an ambulance, is what saves most people.
How do you avoid a shark attack?
Swim between the flags at patrolled beaches, stay out at dawn, dusk and night, avoid murky water and baitfish, and swim with someone (SharkSmart NSW).
