More shark sightings as Margaret River Pro reaches its finale
Perth: Two more sharks have been seen at the Margaret River Pro, with Australian Julian Wilson among the athletes plucked from the water.
The women's semi-final between Lakey Peterson and Carissa Moore was put on hold for about five minutes after a small shark was sighted.
And Wilson's semi-final showdown with Kolohe Andino also had a shark interruption, with the surfers forced to wait on jet skis for almost 10 minutes while the shark left the area.
Andino was also plucked from the water on Sunday when a shark was spotted during his quarter-final win over Seth Moniz.
The incidents come a year after the 2018 Margaret River Pro was cancelled midway through after two recreational surfers were attacked nearby.
Extra safety measures were included for this year's event.
Shark-monitoring drones have been employed for the first time, while the WA Fisheries Department have been dropping an acoustic receiver in the water each day to detect tagged sharks swimming nearby.
The event was moved from mid-April to late May/early June in order to avoid the annual salmon run.
Wilson was the sole Australian left in the men's competition, but he fell to Kolohe Andino in their semi-final showdown. Andino's two-wave total of 10.83 was enough to beat Wilson (9.00) in a low- scoring battle.
Andino will meet John John Florence in the final after the two-time world champion beat Caio Ibelli 14.60-14.10 in a thrilling head-to-head battle.
The match-up is a repeat of the 2017 Margaret River Pro final, which Florence won.
In the women's competition, Australian Sally Fitzgibbons fell to Tatiana Weston-Webb.
Fitzgibbons was leading Weston-Webb by 0.01 with just 90 seconds remaining after posting a two-wave score of 11.67 in the six-to-eight foot conditions.
But Weston-Webb pulled off a seven-point wave with her final attempt to snatch victory, finishing with 13.33.
The other semi-final was also a thrilling affair, with Peterson (15.97) coming up trumps against Moore (15.80) after the shark scare.
Despite missing out on a spot in the final, Fitzgibbons' third place keeps her well and truly in the hunt in the world title race.
AAP