GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA--It's the video that caught the world's attention, but get this, his mother was watching a continent away.
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"It was absolutely terrifying. I just couldn't believe what I was seeing and I thought we'd lost him," his mother explained.
Elizabeth Osbourne wanted to see her son Mick Fanning compete off the coast of South Africa. She was watching as a shark fin popped up next to her son and he got knocked him off his board. Then, a massive wave came and blocked the view of her son as he fought for his life.
"I went over to the television, almost as I could pull him out of the television. I just wanted to save him, really, but there was nothing I could do," she said.
Fanning was able to fight-off the shark and rescuers pulled him from the water. He's not injured and his mom says she was incredibly emotional when she saw her son was OK.