THIS is the terrifying moment a thrillseeker surfed and brazenly danced on the back of a shark – as viewers slammed him for “abusing” and “harassing” the giant creature.
The shocking video, which has been doing the rounds online, was filmed near the drilling platform of the Iranian Offshore Oil Company.
A thrillseeker surfed on the back of a whale shark
After finding his balance, he raised his arms gleefully
He then sat on top of the whale’s back
An Open Source Intelligence X account posted the video – shot in 2023 – with the caption: “Off the coast of Abadan in the Persian Gulf, near the oil rigs, a local was filmed leaping from a boat onto the back of a whale shark, where he danced and rode on it.”
The man is seen leaping into the sea from a boat to approach what is reportedly a whale shark – a species widely regarded as gentle towards humans.
He then grabs hold of the shark’s fin, much like one might with a dolphin.
As the giant fish shifts slightly, he hauls himself onto its back and steadies his balance.
Once upright, he cockily dances and claps his hands together while riding the enormous creature, which appears calm and unperturbed.
When he loses his footing, the man sits down on the shark’s back as it glides through the water beneath him.
Viewers on X were quick to slam the stunt, with one writing: “That’s terrible. Whale sharks are gentle and totally non-threatening creatures who eat plankton.
“Why is he harassing that amazing animal?”
Another fumed: “As an animal lover, it’s sickening to watch this man abusing a whale shark by jumping on it.”
But a third user leapt to the man’s defence, writing: “If the shark didn’t like that, it would just go deeper [into the sea].”
Another joked: “Let men have hobbies.”
It comes as a surfer miraculously walked away unscathed after a shark attack in Australia.
The 13ft great white tore a huge chunk out of his surfboard at Cabarita Beach in New South Wales.
Surfer Brad Ross had been enjoying the early waves when the beast pounced.
A video shared on social media shows him thrashing around in the water and disappearing underneath.
Moments later, he resurfaces and scrambles to safety.
Meanwhile, in the Bahamas, an American tourist was recently mauled by a shark while spearfishing.
The 63-year-old sustained “severe injuries” in the attack, according to police.
The tourist was rushed to a local clinic for treatment before being airlifted to the US for further care.
While sharks roam the waters of the Caribbean, attacks on humans are relatively rare.
According to the International Shark Attack File, there have been just 34 confirmed shark attacks in the Bahamas over the past 400 years.
The shark surfer in action