Brazilian Olympian Bruno Lobo rescued a drowning woman off the coast of Sao Luís, Brazil on Jan. 10, and gave all the credit to God for putting him in position to perform the heroic deed.
“The day that God used me as an instrument to save this young woman, all honor and glory to Him,” wrote in a post on Instagram (translated from Portuguese).
Lobo, who is also an orthopaedic doctor, competed in kite surfing at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He is also a two-time Pan American Games champion.
At the time of the rescue, he was busy training, he said in the video. Lobo claimed that he went into the ocean at around 5:40 p.m. local time “to do the last test.”
“It was a cloudy day, wind conditions were not the best, but I decided to test the support that had arrived, it was the first day using this material, I set the camera to record and went towards the coast,” he said in the video.
Then he saw her.
“After sailing a few meters, I heard a cry for help and looked at the girl who was drowning. I quickly approached her with the kite. I tried to calm her down and asked to climb on my back. She was quite tired and without power. I used the equipment to bring her safely to the sand,” Lobo continued.
Lobo used his gear to help bring the woman back to shore, and then lifeguards gave her further assistance.
World Sailing released a statement commending Lobo’s heroics on Monday.
“Olympic kitesurfer Bruno Lobo jumped into action when he spotted a woman struggling in the ocean while training with his new camera off the coast of São Luís, Brazil. Using his kite, he carried her safely to shore,” the statement read. “Great job Bruno.”
Bruno concluded his video with a warning to fans and viewers.
“Be warned about the dangers of the sea, rivers and any place you don’t know because the current in some places tends to be very strong!”
