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Bethany Hamilton

Bethany Hamilton, a famous surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack at age 13, reached her best competitive result by advancing to the semifinals in a World Surf League event in Fiji. Despite losing her arm, she has become an accomplished surfer through hard work and dedication, inspiring many with her story of perseverance.

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72 views2 pages

Bethany Hamilton

Bethany Hamilton, a famous surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack at age 13, reached her best competitive result by advancing to the semifinals in a World Surf League event in Fiji. Despite losing her arm, she has become an accomplished surfer through hard work and dedication, inspiring many with her story of perseverance.

Uploaded by

hilary.phoebevn
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Bethany Hamilton, a Shark-Attack Survivor, Reaches an Unlikely Crest

The world’s most famous surfer might be Bethany Hamilton, less for her accomplishments on a
board than for the inspiring story of her return to the sport after losing an arm in a shark
attack. But when Hamilton made news on Tuesday it was for her surfing prowess, as she
posted her best competitive result by advancing to the semifinals in an elite World Surf League
competition in Fiji. Hamilton was a top young amateur when she was attacked by a 14-foot
tiger shark in Kauai, Hawaii, at age 13 in 2003. Her friend’s father used a T-shirt and a
urethane surfboard leash to stop the bleeding, possibly saving her life. She lost 60 percent of
her blood in the attack and lost her left arm almost to the shoulder. But she was back surfing
within a month.
The tale led to a book, a documentary and, in 2011, a feature film, “Soul Surfer,” starring AnnaSophia Robb as
Hamilton and Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt as her parents. Hamilton has also made numerous television
appearances, including a third-place finish on “The Amazing Race” in 2014 with her husband, Adam Dirks.
Despite her fame, few expected Hamilton to reach the top level of the sport while surfing with just one arm.
How would she be able to paddle fast enough to catch waves? Would her balance be permanently affected?
Though she has won some lesser events, she is not a World Surf League regular.
But Hamilton was given a wild-card berth into the league’s fifth event of the year. She finished last in her first-
round group but won a second-chance heat, upsetting Tyler Wright of Australia, the world’s No. 1 surfer, who
had won three of the first four events.
Scoring is based on a surfer’s two best rides, and Hamilton had a 7.1 and a stellar 9.0 to win, 16.1-14.9.
On her 9.0 ride, she started with a quick tube ride under the curl of the wave before four slashing turns.
Hamilton won in Round 3 and the quarterfinals as well, before being eliminated in the semifinals by Johanne
Defay of France, who won the event. It was Hamilton’s best result in six World Surf League events, topping a
ninth-place finish in 2010.
“I knew once I beat Tyler I could beat anyone,” Hamilton, 26, told a World Surf League
interviewer after making the quarterfinals. “At the end of the day, it’s just putting it together and
catching the right waves and surfing my best. I know I can compete well against these girls.” Surfers
are not regularly attacked by sharks, but it does happen. A World Surf League men’s event in South
Africa last July was canceled after the three-time world champion Mick Fanning fought off a shark
while television cameras looked on. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/01/

I- Choose the correct option. III- Write the names of these water sports and
1. Bethany is famous because she … equipment.
a. __________________________
a) is a champion surfer b) is an inspiring model
c) wrote the book “Soul Surfer”. b. __________________________
2. A tiger shark destroyed her … when she was 13.
a) left shoulder b) left arm c) left hand c. __________________________
3. Her father’s friends used a … to stop the
d. __________________________
bleeding.
a) shirt b) surfboard c) rope and a T-shirt e. _________________________
4. … later, she was surfing again.
f. _______________________
a) Four weeks b) Two months c) Half a month
II-TRUE or FALSE? g. _______________________
1. Her story was adapted to a film. ______
2. Helen Hunt played the role of Bethany’s sister. h. _______________________
_______
3. Since then, Bethany has participated in some TV i. _______________________
programmes. ________
4. Last week, Bethany defeated Johanne Defay of j. _______________________
France in Fiji. ________
5. Bethany had her best performance in the World k. _______________________
Surf League competition in Fiji. _______
6. The surf champion, Mick Fanning, was also
l. _______________________
attacked by sharks, in 2015. _______
7. Mick Fanning won the World
m. _______________________
Championship twice. _________
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iSLCollective.com

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