- British big wave surfer Andrew Cotton, 36, from Braunton, Devon, broke his back in a wipeout
- The plumber came off his board riding a 50ft wave in Nazare, Portugal on Wednesday
- Mr Cotton has spoken from his hospital bed saying he had been ‘very lucky’
A British big-wave surfer has broken his back in a brutal wipeout after a 50ft wave came crashing down on him off the coast of Portugal.
Andrew Cotton, 36, from Braunton, Devon came off his board while riding a huge wave in Nazare, Portugal, and was severely injured.
Mr Cotton, who holds the world record for biggest wave ever surfed, was rescued from the water and placed on a spinal board before being taken to a local hospital.
Carm before the storm: Britain big wave surfer Andrew Cotton drops a wave during a surf session at Praia do Norte in Nazare, Portugal, shortly before the accident
Video footage show him riding the huge wave at Praia do Norte in Nazare and the moment before it engulfs him, forcing him to jump off his board.
Mr Cotton, a part-time plumber who goes by the nickname Cotty, described the events in an email sent to The Inertia from his hospital bed.
‘I would normally ride waves like that out until their natural end but I decided to jump. I think I knew it [the wave] was heavy and wanted to be off the board when it hit (probably saved my knees and ankles).
‘So I impacted the water on landing and took the wave on the head. Soon after that is when the pain kicked in and I knew something was wrong.’
Inspiration: Mr Cotton is a 36-year-old plumber from Devon who holds the world record for biggest wave ever surfed
Taking the hit: Mr Cotton has described the events as a split-second decision on whether to jump off the board or stay on when the wave came down over him
Impact: Video footage shows the moment the 50ft wave engulfs the 36-year-old surfer
Mr Cotton was rescued from the water and placed on a spinal board before being taken to a local hospital
Later on, Mr Cotton thanked his well-wishers and fans.
‘What can I say, I got a little excited this morning and ending up having possibly the worst wipeout impact wise of my life,’ he said.
‘Thank you to all the lifeguards and crew on the beach who helped stabilise me and do a great spinal recovery, I can’t name everyone but you all did your bit to get me safely to the hospital.
‘I have broken my back but I’ve been really lucky, I’m already looking forward and focusing my energy to get fit and back out there on some more big rollers!’