Bethany Hamilton was born in 1990 in Hawaii and showed an early talent for surfing, winning her first competition at age 8. At age 13, she was attacked by a tiger shark while surfing and lost her left arm and over 60% of her blood. Remarkably, she returned to competitive surfing just one month later and went on to win several competitions, including first place in the 2005 NSSA National Championships. She is considered an inspiration for never giving up in the face of adversity.