Paul de Gelder’s Unlikely Path From a Near-Fatal Attack to ‘Shark Week’ Stardom

Paul de Gelder had given up on his life in the delirious moment 16 years ago when he found himself in Sydney Harbor swimming through a pool of his own blood. An Australian Navy clearance diver at the time, he was rapidly losing blood after an encounter with a bullhead shark in a body of water known for spectacular views of the global capital’s landmarks — not known for sharks, and certainly not shark attacks. Luckily, De Gelder, maimed and bleeding out, managed to get it together enough to swim back to his team who, on that February morning, rapidly shifted from their planned routine counterterrorism drill to a medical triage, desperate to save their teammate’s life.