'My thigh was burning': Deadly shark attacks pregnant wife of ex- NBA player while swimming with her two kids

The pregnant wife of former NBA star Danilo Gallinari was reportedly attacked by a shark when swimming with her children, reports The US Sun. Eleonora Boi shared the ordeal of the attack, which took place in Puerto Rico earlier in August.

Gallinari and Boi, a sports journalist from Italy who was six months pregnant at the time, had been swimming in waist-deep water with their two young children when Boi said she was suddenly bit on the thigh.. It was then that she realised she was attacked by a shark.

The Italian told Good Morning America, "I have to say, I'm traumatized. "I started crying and screaming and I was screaming for help in Italian," the mom of two added.


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'Felt a strong pain in thigh'

"I felt a strong pain, and my thigh was burning, but my idea was, 'maybe it's a huge jellyfish'. "But in the reality, it wasn't a jellyfish.

This was for the first time she spoke out after surviving a shark bite off a beach in Puerto Rico. Boi originally detailed the “worst day of my life” when she posted a photo of herself on Aug. 1 in what appeared to be a hospital.

Boi noted in her Instagram post that the beach was quite populated at the time. The family fled the waters right after the attack, and a good Samaritan helped Boi.

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The segment noted that an unidentified woman put pressure on her wound with a towel until others arrived to help further. “Oh, my God, I was saying, ‘I don’t want to die,’ and ‘I want that my baby is safe,'” Boi said. “And I was crying. I was desperate, really desperate.”

Boi is quite thankful for the help the woman provided at her moment of need. “She was an angel. Danilo was with me, and she helped so much,” Boi told the network.

“I would like to say thank you to this woman, because I don’t know her name, and I just want to say thank you to her because she helped a lot.” Boi landed in the hospital, where she underwent hours of tests.

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Boi was six-month pregnant at the time of attack

Since she was six months pregnant at the time, doctors had to perform several hours of tests to ensure the child — Gallinari said it’s a boy — was OK and that they could proceed to surgery.

Boi is expected to make a full recovery and has weekly visits scheduled with a doctor, per the ABC interview, but she’s still struggling with the moment. She initially joked on Instagram about how the shark would be hearing from her legal representatives soon.

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“I have to be honest, it’s not easy,” Boi said. “When I remember, I’m still scared. It’s difficult.” Eleonora, who has worked as a sports journalist and model, is expected to give birth in October.

Boi and Gallinari tied the knot in 2022, according to People. After 14 seasons in the NBA — including a stint with the Knicks from 2009 to 2011 — Gallinari spent this past season playing in Puerto Rico’s premier basketball league.