A fleet of dinghies reached the last mark of a national championship event off Manly when Matt Visser performed a sailing maneuver called a jibe.
The vessel tipped over and Visser became unconscious.
Mike Middleton and я╗┐Mark Dingley from the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron were filming from a support boat nearby.
“He was in the water face down and totally unresponsive,” Middleton said.
“I dove in and grabbed Matt and brought him back to the media boat,” Dingley said.
They pulled Visser aboard and performed CPR.
“His eyes were glazed, he had no pulse and I’m saying to Mark, we’ve got to get the water out of him,” Middleton said.
“Mark did CPR again about three times and he started to breathe, he coughed.
“We knew that was better than winning $100 million on the lotto.”
Dingley said it was a “phenomenal” feeling.я╗┐
“Just that relief when you see him starting to breathe on his own,” he said.
Visser, who was taken to intensive care, described the experience as “harrowing” but expressed his gratitude to the yachtsmen.
“I thank them dearly from the bottom of my heart,” he said.
“I’ve never had to thank anyone for saving my life before.”
