Great White Shark Thwarts Record Swim Bid

A great white shark has forced a marathon swimmer to abandon his record bid to reach the Farallon Islands from San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.

Simon Dominguez was more than 24 miles into his 28-mile swim on Wednesday afternoon when the shark was spotted by his daughter in a support boat.

The 12ft to 15ft great white began circling the vessel about 18 hours into Mr Dominguez's swim, the Marin Independent Journal reported.

The 49-year-old Australian, who had blood streaming down his chest from chafed skin around his neck, was forced to scrap his bid just three-and-a-half miles from his goal.

"I'm a little bit disappointed," Mr Dominguez told the Journal.

"But you can't control mother nature, and she decided to throw a shark at me."

He added that he would have to consult with his wife and daughter before deciding whether to make another attempt.

Mr Dominguez was trying to become the first person to swim from the iconic Bay area bridge to the Farallon Islands off the Northern California coast.

Four people have swum from the Farallon Islands to San Francisco.