Readers Digest NZ Dec/Jan 2025

PHOTO CREDIT: SEAN POLLARD E lite Paralympic Snowboarder, Sean Pollard, vividly recalls the exact moment that a 3.5 metre great white shark first ‘bumped’ his leg, on an overcast October day in 2014. What began as a blissful, solo-surfing session at one of his favourite beaches soon became a fight for survival - as a tag-team of volunteer first responders, ambu- lance personnel, hospital staff and the Royal Flying Doctor Service tri- aged and treated Sean’s catastrophic injuries. But it was also Sean’s incred- ible courage, stamina and resilience during the actual shark attack that day, that ultimately helped to save his life. Sean was given his first surfboard at the age of 8 and he quickly became obsessed with catching that next ‘big wave’. Sean, his mum and two younger brothers moved to Bunbury, Western Australia when Sean was around 13 and all three brothers started surfing the breaks around the Margaret River region. Sean attended Bunbury Senior High School, where his classroom had the added advan- tage of looking out over the magnifi- cent Indian Ocean. “Pretty much every classroom at Bunbury High has a view of the ocean”, Sean recalls, “So I spent a lot of my classroom time looking out the window and just watching the surf and wishing I was out there. I’d go surfing before school when there were waves…and after school when there were waves!” At the age of 16, Sean left school to start an electrical apprenticeship – a career which gave him the opportu- nity to save money towards living the surfing lifestyle. Travelling the world and going on numerous surfing trips to destinations such as Morocco, France, Spain, Portugal and Indone- sia all fuelled Sean’s passion for surf- ing and the outdoors. “When you are out there in nature and there’s no other people around, you’re not getting annoyed with any phone calls while you’re out in the surf, that’s for sure! So, it’s just like a disconnect from your life on land. It’s a whole different world. And surfing is that incredible moment when you’re riding a wave - a form of energy - which has travelled across the ocean. And it’s greeted you on story supplied by The Royal Flying Doctors Service Of Australia readersdigest.co.nz     25 Drama in Real Life Behind the story of Sean Pollard’s RFDS rescue and his journey to becoming a Winter Paralympian. DRAMA IN REAL LIFE