Champion freediver mauled by notoriously deadly shark in horror attack
A champion freediver has been bitten by a notoriously deadly shark during a training exercise.
Cristian Castaño was attacked by an oceanic whitetip off the coast of Nirvana in San Andrés, a Colombian island in the Caribbean Sea.
The champion, who is a member of the Colombian freediving team and holds multiple national records in the sport, was attacked in the crystal clear waters at around midday on Tuesday.
He was training ahead of the AIDA Freediving World Championship in Roatán, Honduras, between August 19 and 27 this year.
The group of freedivers encountered several oceanic whitetip sharks in the water and Mr Castaño was bitten on the leg.
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Cristian Castaño gives the thumbs up to show his social media followers he is ok (Jam Press)
The freediver climbs back onto dry land following the shark attack (Jam Press Vid)Fortunately, representatives of the Corporation for the Sustainable Development of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina were in the area at the time.
Mr Castaño was rescued in a Coralina boat and was taken to the coast to undergo treatment at a nearby health centre.
Officials said the freediver was able to lift himself onto the boat during his rescue and remained conscious the whole time.
Following the attack, Mr Castaño reassured his followers on social media that he was "fine" and shared a photo of him sporting bandages in hospital.
Coralina said the oceanic whitetip shark probably sank its fangs into the freediver's leg "out of curiosity".
A Coralina spokesperson said: "It is important to remind the community that sharks are in their natural habitat and it is humans who enter their domain.
"Therefore, we must have greater respect for nature and take precautions for this type of encounter."
Oceanic whitetip sharks can be found in tropical and subtropical oceans throughout the world.
They live offshore in deep water, but spend most of their time near the surface, explains NOAA Fisheries.
This species of shark is considered a top predator and feed mainly on bony fish and cephalopods, such as squid.
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According to Smithsonian, the oceanic whitetip shark is very powerful during feeding frenzies and was dubbed "the most dangerous of all sharks" by former French naval officer Jacques Cousteau.
Marine Biologist Michael L. Domeier said oceanic whitetip sharks are "one of the least understood", "least studied" and "most ignored" shark species on the planet.
The diver was bitten on the leg (Jam Press Vid)He explained that because these sharks live in open ocean and deep waters, humans rarely come into contact with them.
He travelled to the Bahamas to learn more about this species and found that, since they are curious, these sharks often get close to boats.
Mr Domeier told Nine.com.au: "Oceanic whitetip sharks have probably killed more people on the planet than any other shark that we know."
The exact number of deaths linked to oceanic whitetip sharks is not clear - but according to the Florida Museum, they are suspected to be responsible for several unrecorded human fatalities.
The oceanic whitetip is the primary species implicated in the shark bites surrounding the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in 1945, also known as the "worst shark attack in history".
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