Pro surfer Kelly Slater has gone on an extraordinary rant claiming Covid is a disease for 'obese people' after reading a pro-vax post by Ironman champ Matt Poole.
Poole, who is dating Australian social media influencer Tammy Hembrow, used a surf analogy to explain how anti-vaxxers can become a burden on the health system.
The 32-year-old athlete also called out fellow Ironman Trevor Hendy for insisting 'freedom of choice' was more important than getting the jab.
'The next time I head down to Surfers (Paradise) I'm going to jump in the rip because 'freedom of choice' - Trev you understand that - you just said you can't dictate to me what is or isn't potentially dangerous,' Poole wrote.
'It's no issue for me, but as soon as I start telling others there is no danger in the rip, they'll jump in too, and tell their mates and before you know it, there is a 100 of us in there. But Trev - that's our choice.'
Poole continued with his surf analogy to illustrate how unvaccinated people are more likely to end up getting Covid and taking up ICU beds in overflowing hospitals.
Ironman champ Matt Poole (left, with girlfriend Tammy Hembrow) has sparked a social media frenzy after calling out anti-vaxxers
Kelly Slater disagreed with Poole's post and said he knew 'more about being healthy than 99% of doctors'
'Now some of the 100 get in trouble, and lifesavers come to save them… putting those lifesavers in danger as well,' he wrote.
'Now 50 are drowning and the lifesavers are overrun, and can't save them all or themselves…. But that was our choice. It's not freedom of choice if it impacts others - it's about helping others.'
His analogy outraged Slater, who stepped in to bizarrely claim to know 'more about being healthy than 99% of doctors.'
'Let me explain why your analogy makes no sense,' the 11-time world surfing champ wrote.
'If I know the risks (informed consent) and I judge the choice to be one that benefits/hurts me based on stats and info and my own ability (health), I can choose accordingly.'
'If something happens to me it's on me, not someone else. Your argument is a false equivalence. Oranges and apples. If 99.7% of all people would be fine with no lifeguard while in that rip and they're given all the possibilities, most could swim the most dangerous part of that beach without risking drowning.'
