Bethany Hamilton

My hero is Bethany Hamilton, a professional surfer who has one arm but surfs with the world’s best surfers. She is what someone would call a surfing prodigy. She has won several competitions. Bethany is able to surf better with one arm than most people can with two arms!

Bethany Hamilton was born in Kauai, Hawaii, on February 8, 1990, into a family of talented surfers. She was the youngest child of Cheri and Tom Hamilton and has two older brothers, Noah and Timothy.

Bethany Hamilton started surfing at age four, creating her hobby. At age eight Bethany entered her first surfing competition, the Rell Sun Menehune. She won both the short and long board division.

On October 31, 2003, Bethany Hamilton was attacked by a 14-foot tiger shark. One month after the attack, Bethany returned to the water again, wanting to go back to pursuing her dream, becoming a professional surfer. In January 2004, Bethany returned to surf competition, placing fifth in the Open Women’s Division. About a year after the attack she placed first in the Exploring Women’s Division of the 2005 NSSA National Championship, winning her first national title. In 2007, Bethany turned professional.

After becoming a professional surfer, Bethany participated in many ASP and World Tour events/competitions. Her major highlight was finishing second place in the ASP 2009 World Junior Championship. Bethany is known for not only her gift in surfing but for the devastating shark attack that could have derailed her dreams but instead propelled her to greatness.

Besides surfing, Bethany also writes books, mostly about her and the shark attack. One of the many books that she wrote is Soul Surfer, which later turned into the movie Soul Surfer, based on Bethany’s story both before and after the shark attack.

Bethany is an amazingly talented surfer, placing very well in all of the competitions she has entered. The main thing that is important about Bethany’s career is that she loves what she is doing and doesn’t care about what the other surfers think of her, as she quotes, “I don’t think it matters if you are the best surfer in the world. I’m going to be the best surfer I can be. It’s not all about competing and being the best. It’s more about having fun and doing what you love!”

On October 31, 2003, Bethany was surfing in clear waters of the coast of Kauai’s north Shore in Hawaii when all of a sudden, a 14-foot tiger shark came up out of the water and bit off Bethany’s left arm almost up to the armpit. The gash was 16 inches long and eight inches wide. That day she lost over 60 percent of her blood from the attack. After making it through several surgeries without infection, Bethany was on her way to recovery.

When Bethany was attacked by the shark, she felt lots of pressure and some especially fast tugs. While the shark was attacking her, all she saw was a gray blur. After the shark stopped, she watched as the water around her turned bright red. Somehow she stayed calm and paddled back to shore.

The day the shark attack happened, Tom, her dad, was scheduled for knee surgery at the hospital in Kauai, the Wilcox Memorial Hospital, so the doctor had to reschedule the knee surgery and take Bethany to the operating room right away.

After the attack, her faith in Jesus Christ and God increased a lot. Jesus and God inspired her to get back in the water as soon as she could and start surfing again. She kept trying and didn’t give up. As Bethany said, “People can do whatever they want if they just set their heart to it and just never give up and just go out there and do it.” Sometimes Bethany asks herself, “Why me?” but then she answers, “More positive has come out of it than negative.” Since the attack, Bethany has seen more than 3 sharks in the water. Once a five-foot hammerhead shark swam right under her!

Bethany Hamilton has a prosthetic arm but never uses it. She says that “It doesn’t really come in handy, and it’s not waterproof or anything.” The prosthetic arm was custom-made, and she says “It’s not really going to make me more confident having a real arm and a fake arm."

On Bethany’s surfboard, there is a special design to keep away the sharks. As Noah described, “It looks a little like zebra stripes, but it mimics a poisonous sea creature. It’s almost like shark repellent.” Bethany’s surfboard is specially designed and has a handle on it to help her duck in the water.

Bethany Hamilton started a foundation called Friends of Bethany. It supports shark attack survivors and amputees and wants to inspire others through Bethany’s amazing life story. Bethany is involved in many other charities, one of them being Surf Aids. Bethany says “Love life.” One of Bethany’s favorite quotes is, “When we are weak, God will shine His strength through us."

Bethany inspires me because of her amazing perseverance and life story. She is an amazing surfer, but most importantly she never gives up. She had the courage and strength to go back to the ocean to do what she loves--surfing. She has taught me many lessons through her life story, one of them being don’t give up and another one being do what you love. I would love to emulate her perseverance, courage, loyalty and much more. She has inspired not only me but many others as well. Bethany Hamilton is a hero. My hero.

Fun Facts-
-Bethany won the ESPY award in 2004 from ESPN, awarded for the Best Comeback Athlete.
- In 2004, Teen Choice Awards presented her a special Courage Award.
- After the attack, when Bethany started surfing again, she said, “It was like having to learn the sport all over again.”
- In the movie Soul Surfer, Bethany Hamilton did the stunt surfing for her character.
- She said that even if she had the chance to redo what had happened to her, she wouldn’t do redo it.