Bethany Hamilton

Bethany Hamilton was born on February 8, 1990 in North Shore, Kauai. She is an amazing person. She is well known by many people and is a hero of not just me, but many other people in this world also. She is strong, brave, courageous, and competitive. Bethany is all of this and she is only at the age of fifteen!

bethany on a surf board (http://estaticos.elmundo.es/magazine/imagenes/2004/231/1077898238.jpg)

Bethany is in love with surfing and has been doing it her whole life. She is getting close to her dream of becoming a professional surfer. She has won many competitions and she was competing in national surfing events. By age thirteen she was an accomplished surfer and she was well respected in the surfing world. Bethany would surf every chance she could and loved it.

Bethany was on her way to becoming her dream as a professional surfer. On October 31, 2005 something horrible happened. A 14-foot tiger shark attacked Bethany. The shark took her arm off and she was rushed to the hospital. Even though she lost her arm surfing that didn’t stop her. She was not afraid to surf again. She kept asking when could she surf again while she was healing.

even with one arm she still wins competitions!! (http://www.bethanyhamilton.com/)

About two weeks after Bethany getting stitches she got back on the surfboard. She had a personal trainer to help teach her how to surf with one arm. At first she had much trouble getting up to stand on the surfboard and paddling. Eventually she learned how to do it and then she was surfing again. Not only did she start surfing again but she also is competing again. She also is being pressured while competing surf events because some people just watch and wait for her to make a mistake or fall but she never does.

Behtany with her surf board. (http://www.bethanyhamilton.com/surfinggallery/index.htm)

Bethany is a perfect example of a hero because she is strong, brave, and has a spirit of a fighter. Bethany is a leader because she is self-confident and does not quit. She also is very intelligent because she is only 14 and wrote a book. I would like to see how she does later on in life because she is fourteen and she is very wealthy and successful. In about twenty years I bet she will be a professional surfer and she is going to set many records. I will keep my eye on her and see what she is going to become.