Champion snowboarder Alex Pullin, 32, is believed to have drowned on the Gold Coast after blacking out while spearfishing – leaving his family who were on the beach distraught
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World champion snowboarder Alex ‘Chumpy’ Pullin has drowned while spearfishing on the Gold Coast.
Pullin, 32, was spearfishing at Palm Beach when he reportedly suffered a shallow water blackout at about 10.30am on Wednesday.
He won gold medals at the 2011 and 2013 World Championships and represented Australia at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, where he was the flag bearer.
World champion snowboarder Alex ‘Chumpy’ Pullin (right) has drowned while spearfishing on the Gold Coast
Pullin won gold medals at the 2011 and 2013 World Championships and represented Australia at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, where he was the flag bearer
Another spear fisherman saw the man unresponsive on the ocean floor and got the attention of a surfer, who paddled to shore to alert lifeguards, Gold Coast Bulletin reported.
Lifeguards gave the man CPR until paramedics from Queensland Ambulance arrived and took over.
A QLD Police spokesperson said officers were called to the beach just before 11am and crews remain on the scene.
The man’s family were on the beach at the time of the incident. He is reportedly a high-profile athlete.
More to come
The man, aged in his 30s, was spear fishing at Palm Beach on the Gold Coast when he suffered a shallow water blackout at about 10.30am on Wednesday (stock image)