The World Surf League New Zealand Pro event in Raglan was paused on May 25 after Australian photographer Ed Sloane was bitten on his left foot in the water just before 8:30 a.m. local time during the men's semi-final between Brazilian surfers Yago Dora and Italo Ferreira [1, 2, 3, 4].
The event’s organizers declared a "code red," a safety protocol activated for the first time at a WSL event, signaling a serious sea creature attack. Renato Hickel, one of the event officials, said, "We activate the code red when it's a sea life attack on a surfer or a photographer. This time it was our beloved water photographer and thank God he's in good spirits. He's well considering what happened." [1]
It remains unclear if the bite came from a shark or a sea lion. Hickel noted, "At this stage we’re not certain if it was a shark or a sea lion. The doctor that was here helping on the scene was inclined to think it was a sea lion instead of a shark. Nevertheless, very scary." [2] The photographer suffered small puncture wounds and was taken to hospital in stable condition [1, 5]. Sloane later thanked the event’s safety teams, saying, "Massive thank you to our water patrol for the quick response, our medical team and all the support from our teams for the immediate assistance I received." [4]
Brazilian surfers Yago Dora and Italo Ferreira were quickly extracted from the water by jet skis during the incident and appeared shaken [1, 3]. The New Zealand Pro, the largest surf event in the country, takes place at Raglan on the North Island, known for its long left-hand point break waves [2, 3].
The event was suspended for several hours while the scene was secured, then resumed later on May 25 with Italo Ferreira winning the men’s competition [2, 4]. Additional safety measures including jet skis, drones, and onshore spotters were in place for the event [4].
The "code red" protocol was introduced after Australian Mick Fanning was attacked by a shark during a WSL event in 2015 at Jeffreys Bay, South Africa [2, 4].
