‘NICEST, KINDEST HUMAN’

Swimmer Fatally Mauled by Shark Off Australian Coast Identified as Dive Instructor About to Get Married

Simon Nellist was a shark advocate who was training for a weekend charity swim when he was attacked in the first reported shark fatality in Sydney in more than half a century.

The man killed by a great white shark just off a Sydney beach on Wednesday has been identified as a British ocean-lover about to get married, according to friends. Simon Nellist, 35, had been living in Australia for years when he was grabbed by the animal in the first reported shark fatality in Sydney since 1963. He had been working as a dive instructor, and training for an upcoming charity event, now canceled in light of Nellist’s death. “Everything that is connected to Simon is connected to the ocean,” one friend, Della Ross, told Australian outlet 7NEWS. “The news hit us like a truck because he was one of the people who make this earth lighter.” Another described him as “the nicest, kindest human,” adding, “It is a huge loss.” A witness to the attack said that Nellist had been “swimming across the headland,” and the shark had come at him “at full speed” close to the rocks. “He was massively into wildlife and knew exactly what he was doing,” a friend said. “He wasn’t daft. It’s just a freak accident.” Nellist was also a shark advocate who would often post about the predators on social media. A GoFundMe has been set up in support of Nellist’s fiancée.