Advertisement
The mild-mannered ‘Bollard Man’ who faced down the crazed Westfield Bondi Junction killer went for a two-hour jog after the confrontation and then returned to his job as a carpenter, it emerged today. Details of 31-year-old Damien Guerot’s (pictured) ordeal were on Wednesday revealed by his father back at his home in France.
Loic Guerot said: ‘I’ve had a lot of trouble sleeping, it’s incredible. I can’t find the words, I’m extremely proud.’ The family is from Saint-Jean-sur-Mayenne, in the Loire Valley, some 200 miles southwest of Paris. Damien left the town six years ago, and is now happily settled in Australia, where on Saturday he played a key role in halting the mall massacre in Sydney.
A now viral video shows him bravely facing down knife-wielding murderer Joel Cauchi, 40, as he advanced menacingly up an escalator. Admitting that he could have lost his son, Mr Guerot said: ‘He feels very, very good now. He went for a two-hour jog afterwards. ‘We talked for two hours and then he went to sleep. And then off to work the next morning!’
Saying that Damien was a skilled carpenter who works on construction sites in Australia, Mr Guerot said: ‘He always maintains the same values and he always thinks of others. ‘He’s always been a go-getter, that’s how he is. He always thinks of others before himself!’ Mr Guerot added. A childhood friend in Saint-Jean-sur-Mayenne, who asked not to be named, said: ‘Damien is an incredible guy, and extremely low-key with it. ‘He know he’s famous around the world now, but doesn’t want to show off. He’ll just get on with his ordinary life, like he always does.’
President Emmanuel Macron himself has also praised Mr Guerot and fellow Frenchman Silas Despreaux (pictured) for helping to stop the knifeman. ‘Two of our compatriots behaved like true heroes,’ Mr Macron wrote on Twitter X. ‘Very great pride and recognition.’
His comments came after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese pledged to grant Mr Guerot citizenship for his heroism. ‘I say this to Damien Guerot, who is dealing with his visa applications, that you are welcome here,’ Mr Albanese said on Tuesday. ‘You are welcome to stay for as long as you like. This is someone who we would welcome becoming an Australian citizen, although that would of course be a loss for France.’
Mr Guerot was going to the gym with Mr Despreaux on Saturday afternoon when they stumbled across the scene of carnage. ‘We tried to catch him but he was going down the stairs,’ Mr Guerot told 7News. ‘Then we saw him going down so we followed him from the top. We tried to maybe throw the bollard to him but we couldn’t.’
Mr Guerot said he was running off pure ‘adrenaline’. ‘We didn’t think. You cannot think in that moment,’ he said. ‘His eyes were like empty eyes… he wasn’t there,’ Mr Guerot said.
The two mates launched the bollards at Cauchi but he managed to escape. Mr Guerot grabbed a chair and made chase with NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott who shot Cauchi dead after he lunged at her.
The Frenchman praised the quick-thinking of Inspector Scott. ‘She was actually the hero, she did the job,’ he said.
Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Hit the follow button above for more of the news you need.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk