The sports realm is not unfamiliar with brawls. And recently a similar incident on tides has chilled the surfing community. A woman was manhandled by a Brazilian Pro surfer when she was surfing at Pandawa Beach in Bali. The unfortunate occurrence on the sea was followed by a fierce tussle on the shore, where the man was seen assaulting the woman, Sara Taylor, repeatedly as her friend Charlie filmed the frightening incident. 

The women later shared their terrible experiences on their social media accounts, asking to help them find the men. Shocked by the viral video, Kelly Slater, the surfing legend, asked for the deportation of the attacker. Now, another surfing hero, Mick Fanning, responds to the incident.

Mick Fanning reacts to the woman surfer attack’s viral video 

The incident unfolded when Sara Taylor, an American woman, was surfing in Bali. Taylor happened to drop into a wave Brazilian Adriano Portela was riding. His friend João Paulo Azevedo was quick to punch Taylor in the back of the head after a heated argument on the waves. The brawl continued when Taylor confronted Azevedo on the shore. 

Kelly Slater, a 51-year-old dynamic surfer, took to Instagram and wrote “@rizaltandjung did you see or hear about this? Get this guy @jp_azevedosurf sent home where he belongs,” condemning the horrible act. 

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After Kelly Slater, Mick Fanning, the 3x champion of the World Surf League expressed his disgust over the attack on Taylor. Criticizing the attack, Fanning labeled the men in question as “weak humans”. Another Australian surfer, Felicity Palmateer, called it “ so disgusting and actually terrifying.” 

The attacker, now identified as João Paulo Azevedo, puts his side of the story

The Brazilian star, João Paulo Azevedo, was now cast aside by the sponsor Quebra Onda. After the video went viral, Azevedo told a Brazilian media outlet that he misconceived Ms. Taylor to be a man and that he reacted with “momentary stress”.

“She was riding everyone’s wave, she wasn’t respecting anyone. She went with my friend’s wave and pushed my friend out of the loop,” said Azevedo.

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The incident was quite unfortunate and left surfing celebrities and enthusiasts dismayed. What are your thoughts on the distressing video?