Italian sports journalist Eleonora Boi was left with life-altering injuries after surviving a grisly shark attack while swimming in shallow water off the coast. In addition, the incident occurred while she was six months pregnant. She was accompanied by her husband, Danilo Gallinari, a former NBA player, and their two small children. Though she remains drug and disease free, the world-shattering surprise has upended the ecosystem in which Boi lives, leaving her shaken.
On the day of the attack, Boi was enjoying life splashing around in the water. Without warning, she experienced an agonizing chomp on her upper leg from a shark. In one of those near-death panic moments, she started crying and screaming for help in Italian.
“I started crying and screaming and I was screaming for help in Italian,” – Eleonora Boi
Seeing the chaos unfold, Gallinari ran to her side as soon as she could. He described his immediate response, saying, “So as soon as people started yelling, I had my baby with me. I just took off running to my wife and my little girl.” His swift reply was a huge factor in outcome. An unnamed good Samaritan remained with Boi until emergency responders were able to arrive, which turned out to be enormously helpful.
Boi was transported to the emergency room. Once there, physicians performed hours of testing to make sure her baby was healthy enough before proceeding with the surgery.
“After they gave us confirmation that the kid was OK and nothing happened to him, then they started the surgery process,” – Danilo Gallinari
In the aftermath of the incident, Boi took to social media to share her experience. While she continues to heal physically, she did share that going through this experience has been mentally very hard on her –
“I was crying. I was desperate, really desperate,” – Eleonora Boi
At first, she said the pain felt like a “giant jellyfish.” Then, she sounded the alarm and realized it was, in fact, a shark that had bitten her.
“I felt a strong pain, and my thigh was burning, but my idea was, ‘Maybe it’s a huge jellyfish,’” – Eleonora Boi
In the aftermath of the event, Boi shared her thoughts while she was being attacked.
“Oh, my God, I was saying, ‘I don’t want to die’ and ‘I want that my baby is safe,’” – Eleonora Boi
Despite the trauma, both Boi and Gallinari expressed immense gratitude towards the good Samaritan who aided them during their time of need.
“She was an angel. Danilo was with me, and she helped so much. I would like to say thank you to this woman, because I don’t know her name, and I just want to say thank you to her, because she helped a lot,” – Eleonora Boi
Now that Boi’s due date is approaching in mid-November, she still has weekly visits with her doctor. Gallinari stressed that even when physical recovery is quick, emotional healing takes time.
“I think that the body in this situation recovers faster than the mind, and that’s something that, you know, you don’t have to be ashamed of or scared of,” – Danilo Gallinari
