Current:Home > reviewsFishing crew denied $3.5 million prize after their 619-pound marlin is bitten by a shark -FundPrime
Fishing crew denied $3.5 million prize after their 619-pound marlin is bitten by a shark
View
Date:2025-04-16 12:27:52
Members of a competitive fishing crew are filing a protest after their enormous catch was disqualified from a tournament in North Carolina because of a shark bite. The team, called Sensation, had competed alongside more than 200 other groups in the the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament on Sunday, and their catch — a blue marlin weighing 619.4 pounds — would have won prize money totalling about $3.5 million.
Sensation's crew would have received $2.77 million for taking first place and another $739,500 for catching the first fish of the year that weighed more 500 pounds, CBS Sports reported. But the crew did not win the tournament, nor did team members receive any monetary reward, despite the blue marlin's size. Tournament officials said the marlin could not be considered eligible because it appeared that a shark had taken a bite out of the fish before it was caught.
"After careful deliberation and discussions between the Big Rock Rules Committee and Board of Directors with biologists from both NC State CMAST and NC Marine Fisheries biologists as well as an IGFA official, it was determined that Sensation's 619.4 lb. Blue Marlin is disqualified due to mutilation caused by a shark or other marine animal," tournament officials said in a statement shared to Facebook on Sunday. "It was deemed that the fish was mutilated before it was landed or boated and therefore it was disqualified."
Official statement from The Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.
Posted by The Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament on Sunday, June 18, 2023
The Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament follows rules already set by the International Game Fishing Association, tournament officials added.
"IGFA rules state that the following situation will disqualify a fish: 'Mutilation to the fish, prior to landing or boating the catch, caused by sharks, other fish, mammals, or propellers that remove or penetrate the flesh,'" tournament officials said. "This decision is consistent with prior decisions made by the tournament in similar circumstances over the last 65 years."
Sushi, the name of another team that competed in the tournament, was declared the winner after Sensation's disqualification. That team rose to first place with their 484.5-pound catch. Additional teams that took second and third place in the blue marlin tournament had catches weighing 479.8 pounds and 470.2 pounds, respectively.
Ashley Bleu, who owns the Sensation boat from which the fishing team took its name, filed a protest after the tournament decision was finalized, CBS affiliate WNCT reported.
"The problem we have is we've got an interpretation of a rule that necessarily isn't as clear as everybody seems to think ... There's three dots behind Big Rock's announcement that leaves a lot of language behind it that wasn't disclosed," Bleau said, according to WNCT.
"We're at the Big Rock Landing finding out that, they jump on board, start poking around and they're like, 'Oh well this seems to be an issue,'" Bleau added. "They said, 'It looked like a shark bite.' I can tell you from the bottom of my heart, nobody on that boat ever saw a shark."
- In:
- Lawsuit
- Shark
- North Carolina
veryGood! (51)
Related
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- The Daily Money: Scammers on campus
- Dolphins rookie Jaylen Wright among season's top fantasy football sleepers
- Michigan doctor charged with taking photos and videos of naked children and adults
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Committee says lack of communication, training led to thousands of dropped cases by Houston police
- Tim Walz is still introducing himself to voters. Here are things to know about Harris’ VP pick
- Elevated lead levels found in drinking water at Oakland, California, public schools
- Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
- When is the first day of fall? What to know about the start of the autumnal season
Ranking
- 'Most Whopper
- Elevated lead levels found in drinking water at Oakland, California, public schools
- Gigi Hadid Shares Rare Glimpse of Daughter Khai Malik in Summer Photo Diary
- Fannie Lou Hamer rattled the Democratic convention with her ‘Is this America?’ speech 60 years ago
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- What Ben Affleck Was Up to When Jennifer Lopez Filed for Divorce
- Elevated lead levels found in drinking water at Oakland, California, public schools
- 'Hard Knocks': Caleb Williams' QB1 evolution, Bears nearly trade for Matt Judon
Recommendation
Nearly half of US teens are online ‘constantly,’ Pew report finds
Small and affordable Jeep Cherokee and Renegade SUVs are returning
Nevada wildfire causes rail and power outages, but crews halt flames’ progress
FTC’s bid to ban noncompete agreements rejected by federal judge in Texas
A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
Here's What Jennifer Lopez Is Seeking in Ben Affleck Breakup
Olympian Aly Raisman Shares Mental Health Advice for Jordan Chiles Amid Medal Controversy
Remains found on Michigan property confirmed to be from woman missing since 2021