New Hampshire Boy Catches 177-Lb. Fish That May Set New World Record: Photos
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NEED TO KNOW
- A 13-year-old boy caught a 177-lb. halibut on Sept. 1
- Photos show the New Hampshire teen, Jackson Denio, standing next to the fish, which outweighed him by more than 50 lbs.
- Jackson may have broken multiple world records with the catch, and he and his family plan to verify the potential achievement with the International Game Fish Association
A teen from New Hampshire may have just set world fishing records.
Jackson Denio, 13, of Hampton caught a 177-lb. Atlantic halibut while fishing 100 miles off the New England Coast on Monday, Sept. 1, per the Associated Press.
He was on an overnight trip with Al Gauron Deep Sea Fishing and Whale Watching with about 30 other people, and he told the crew that he hoped to catch a shark that day, per the outlet. The crew advised him to cast a line to the bottom, and he felt a tug within minutes.
“I think I screamed, honestly,” Jackson, who weighs around 120 pounds, told the outlet while recalling the moment. “I don’t know exactly what happened, but I was very excited.”
Jackson wrestled with the massive fish for about half an hour before finally getting it on board the boat.
Jill Denio/AP
Jim Walsh, the captain of the vessel, told the AP that he was impressed with the teen’s composure throughout the nerve-wracking episode.
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“He did not let go once,” Walsh said. “He never let anybody else touch the rod. And he worked him, worked him. Then eventually, the fish starts to tire out. Even though he’s that big, they got to tire.”
He added, “Then he got it up to the surface. That’s when we looked and went ‘Oh my God.’ We were all ecstatic.”
Jackson and his family plan to send details of the catch to the International Game Fish Association with the hopes of attaining world records in both the junior record for Atlantic halibut category as well as line class for all fish.
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PEOPLE reached out to the International Game Fish Association for comment on Friday, Sept. 5, but did not receive an immediate response.
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And as to how the recent event has affected Jackson? He told the AP that the potential achievement makes him even more excited to keep fishing.
“It makes me want to keep fishing even more and try and beat the record if I can,” he said.
Credit to Nypost AND Peoples
