Barry University basketball player Chad Renfro will have to stay off the court for quite some time, but after what happened when he was visiting his parents in Jacksonville last weekend he’s lucky his career is not in jeopardy. According to WSVN-TV, Renfro was bitten by a shark while surfing at a beach near his parents’ home. Despite suffering a nasty foot injury where the shark latched on, Renfro was able to make it to shore where he was rushed to the hospital by lifeguards.
“I just got a wave and I was paddling back out and I felt a shark clamp on my foot,” he explained.
The bite, which was believed to have been delivered by either a bull or lemon shark, sliced Renfro’s tendon and left a wound that required a whopping 85 stitches to close. While he says the pain was excruciating, the junior guard feels fortunate that all of his body parts remain intact.
“It wasn’t as bad as losing your whole foot,” Renfro said. “They were doing x-rays to see if there might have been a shark tooth, but there wasn’t. No souvenir.”
Renfro is expected to make a full recovery and says he will return to both basketball and surfing. While he was aware that the threat of a shark attack existed, he says he thought his chances of winning the lottery were greater. I can’t say whether or not I’d be getting back on the board after something like that happened, but I guess if you like to play the odds the chances of getting attacked by a shark twice in your lifetime are next to impossible.
Naturally, we have to pose this question: Would you rather be bitten in the foot by a shark, or have this happen to you on the golf course?
