A man who survived a terrifying great white shark attack said he might now buy a lottery ticket after his lucky escape.
Nat Drummond, 19, had been competing at about 700m out to sea at Seacliff Surf Lifesaving Club, near Adelaide, Australia in a surf ski kayak on Sunday, when he was suddenly thrown into the water.
A large shark had bitten through the skis of his craft, causing him to be ejected and placed immediately into harm's way.
With only moments separating him from a potentially gruesome end, Mr Drummond swam quickly away, before being rescued by a lifesaving crew in an inflatable rescue boat.
He was then taken back to the shore and checked over - and miraculously found to be uninjured. Patrols were then launched along the beach to locate the shark, which is believed to be a great white measuring about 3m in length.
Reflecting on how he avoided death, the kayaker told 9 News: "I just ripped my leg rope (attached to the surf ski) off and I swam towards these guys here who were paddling towards me, and then just jumped onto their craft and pulled me out of the water to safety.
"It was an absolute freak accident. One of those one-in-a-million things that happened.
"I might go and buy a lottery ticket", he joked.
But Nat, who shared photos of his damaged kayak in the aftermath, believes the incident shouldn't put people off taking part in watersports in the area, saying: "We were out in pretty deep waters, this shouldn't put other people off"
Parts of the damaged craft later washed up on the beach.
Authorities closed several miles of the beach on Sunday following the incident, with life savers due to meet with South Australia police to discuss when it may be safe for reopening.
