Professional surfer Arran Strong, 28, is presumed dead after disappearing off the coast of Portugal four days prior, GB Surfing confirmed. Strong went missing approximately one mile off the coast near Arrifana beach on Monday.
He was with his coach, Jose Maria Pyrrait, when they stopped to drink water and take photographs. According to Pyrrait's Instagram post, he allowed Strong to paddle ahead, a common practice as Pyrrait's pace is faster. When Pyrrait stopped to wait, he saw Strong's board drifting about 100 meters away. He searched the area but noted poor visibility and the depth of the water.
The Autoridade Marítima Nacional (AMN) was alerted to Strong experiencing difficulties in the water at 11:33 BST on Monday. He disappeared at sea while crossing from Monte Clerigo Beach to Carrapateira, the AMN told BBC Sport. A nearby fishing boat rescued Pyrrait.
The AMN halted its search for Strong on Thursday. Pyrrait described Strong as being like a son, having trained with him since he was ten years old and spending holidays together. "Curiously, he always used to say he would die young," Pyrrait wrote. "Right now, I feel profound pain; my only faint consolation is that he passed away at sea—a place he loved so dearly."
Strong was the highest-ranked British surfer in the last two ISA World Surf Games and competed on the World Surf League tour for a decade. GB Surfing released a statement calling his passing a "devastating loss to our sport and the wider surfing community."