Inside the incredible highs and lows of surfing icon Mick Fanning’s life as he loses his third brother in unimaginable tragedy
Australian surfing legend Mick Fanning has suffered another tragic blow in a life full of incredible highs and devastating lows.
The three-time world champion has three older brothers, all of whom have now passed away, after the shocking news that his sibling Edward has passed away was revealed on Tuesday.
It is believed that Edward Fanning, who was in his 40s, lived and worked at a surf tour camp in Madagascar.
Edward’s best friend, Coolangatta bodyboarder Stevie Maher, took to Facebook to relay the devastating news.
Mick Fanning has suffered another tragic blow with the news that his brother Edward has passed away
Edward (pictured left with brother Mick), who was in his 40s, worked at a surf tour camp in Madagascar
“First, I would like to express my condolences to the Fanning family… mother Liz, father John, sister Rachel and brother Mick,” Maher wrote.
Mick Fanning has not commented on the shocking news, which comes after he lost his other brothers Sean and Peter in tragic circumstances.
He was with Sean when he died in a car crash in Coolangatta in 1998, the loss propelling him to realize their shared dream of completing a world professional surfing tour.
‘Sean was only 20 when he died… We were at a party together but broke up. “I was walking home… Sean jumped in a car with friends,” he said Men’s health magazine 2021.
‘On the walk home the police picked me up and told me Sean was gone. The news bothered me and I had to tell the family.
Mick Fanning (left) is pictured with his older brother Sean, who died in a car crash in 1998
‘I locked myself in my room and didn’t come out for a week.
“When I finally got myself together, my motivation to achieve my goals went into hyperdrive. I wanted to honor my brother by making our dream come true.”
Mick also revealed that he paid tribute to Sean by scratching his initials into the wax of his surfboard every time he paddled out into the surf.
It’s a ritual he continued as he more than achieved their shared dream, from a wildcard entry into the Bells Beach competition in 2001 to being crowned world champion in 2007, 2009 and 2013 – and being named Australian Male Surfer of the Year. six times.
He was riding high going into 2015, not knowing he was about to make headlines as he experienced possibly the most incredible breakaway in the history of the sport.
The three-time world champion famously fought a great white shark during a match in South Africa in July 2015 (pictured)
The shark attack left Fanning with post-traumatic stress disorder and recurring nightmares
In July, he was competing in the final of the J-Bay Open in South Africa when he was attacked by a huge great white shark.
Footage released by the World Surf League (WSL) showed the shark fin emerging from the water before following Fanning as he paddled out of the shallows.
You can see Fanning get knocked off his board before he tries to use it as a shield to keep the shark from biting him.
The clip ends with him being towed into a lifeboat by officials and taken back to shore.
Afterwards, Fanning – who was miraculously unhurt and only lost a leg rope in the incident – said: ‘It came up and got stuck in my leg rope.
‘I immediately jumped away. It kept coming on my board and I was kicking and screaming.
‘I just saw fins. I hit him in the back.’
The experience, which was watched live on TV by thousands of shocked spectators, left Fanning with post-traumatic stress disorder and recurring nightmares in the years that followed.
It was later that year, just before competing in the Pipeline Masters, that Fanning heard the tragic news that his older brother Peter had died of an enlarged heart.
Fanning is depicted as a baby being held by his sister Rachel, with his mother Elizabeth and three older brothers Sean, Edward and Peter.
Fanning (pictured below center) took to Instagram and shared an old family photo of himself with his brothers Peter, Edward and Sean after learning of Peter’s death just hours before he bravely competed in Hawaii in December 2015.
The 42-year-old is set to paddle to Hawaii just hours after learning his brother Peter had died in December 2015 from an enlarged heart.
“That was the one that just threw me off. I thought, ‘What else? What else can I take into a year?” I hit rock bottom at the end of 2015,” he told 60 Minutes.
Fanning then explained the “emptiness” he felt during the eighteen months that followed.
‘I felt like I had nothing to give, nothing to give to myself, to the people around me, to family or friends. “I just didn’t see any way to come back,” he said.
‘I’ve never felt so empty, I just lay in bed, did nothing, didn’t want to leave the house.’
The following year, in early 2016, Fanning would divorce his ex-wife Karissa Dalton after seven years of marriage.
That same year, Fanning would join fellow surfer Joel Parkinson and other friends in helping to establish Balter Brewery in Currumbin on the Gold Coast.
The craft beer was a huge success and was snapped up by Carlton & United Breweries in 2019 in a shock acquisition for somewhere between $150 million and $200 million.
Fanning split from his former swimsuit model and entrepreneur wife Karissa in 2016
The surfing icon delighted fans in 2023 with the news that he and partner Breeana Randall (pictured with son Xander) are expecting their second child
Fanning’s investment in the company earned him a $4 million windfall, but it is only a small part of his other business ventures, which include a large real estate portfolio, loyal sponsors and other projects.
In 2020, Fanning welcomed his first child, Xander Dean Fanning, with new fiancée Breeana Randall.
The couple in love made their relationship public at the end of November 2017.
The surfing legend told 60 Minutes that the birth of his son gave him a new lease on life.
“Just the love and care that you can give to a human being, it’s wild, it’s so mind-blowing,” he said.
‘I have lived a very big life, but the most important thing for me now is family.
“Right now I’m really content and happy just being home and doing the dad thing.
“It’s been incredible to watch Xander grow and relearn life through his eyes.”
In December 2023, Fanning announced that he and partner Breeana Randall are expecting their second child.