10-Year-Old Boy Snags Massive 200lb Tuna Off the Coast of Tasmania, Sets New Record

10-Year-Old Boy Snags Massive 200lb Tuna Off the Coast of Tasmania, Sets New Record
(Courtesy of Leo Miller)
Jenni Julander
12/19/2020
Updated:
12/19/2020

A 10-year-old boy was fishing with his father off Maatsuyker Island in Tasmania when he reeled in a record catch: a 194-pound (approx. 88-kilogram) bluefin tuna.

The fish measured in at 6 feet, 2 inches (1.9 meters) and is believed to be the largest southern bluefin tuna caught on a 24-kilogram (approx. 53-pound) line by someone under the age of 11.

The boy, Lochie Miller, set a new Australian record with the catch on Nov. 29. His father, Leo Miller, told 7 News that it took nearly three hours to reel in the huge fish.
(Courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/leo.miller.92">Leo Miller</a>)
(Courtesy of Leo Miller)

The catch took them both by surprise. Leo had just hauled in an 88.2-pound (approx. 40-kilogram) fish when he handed the rod to his son and asked if Lochie would like to have a go.

Not long afterward, the boy snagged the monster tuna.

“The rod went off and he attached his harness and started fighting the fish,” Leo recounted in an interview with Daily Mail. “It didn’t take too long before we realized it was a better sized one.”

Leo tried to step in to help, but he says his son was too determined to let his dad help.

(Courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/leo.miller.92">Leo Miller</a>)
(Courtesy of Leo Miller)

“There were stages when he wanted to get off, he was pretty tired but he’s a very determined boy and he stuck with it,” Leo explained.

So, for 2 hours and 45 minutes, Lochie struggled to haul in the monster fish on a 24-kilogram line. Leo said that at times, his son was “not in a good place” but refused to give up.

“It was very hard to reel it in, it was really heavy and I was very tired by the end,” Lochie said.

(Courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/leo.miller.92">Leo Miller</a>)
(Courtesy of Leo Miller)

Leo says his son was sore afterward, but it was worth it in the end.

“He was very tired and in quite a bit of pain and discomfort and it’s also quite a mental struggle to focus for that long,” Leo explained.

The duo is currently working on the paperwork to make Lochie an official record holder for the 88-kilogram (approx. 194-pound) catch.

Since then, Leo says the family has been eating tuna for “breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”

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Jenni Julander is a writer based in the Rocky Mountains, where she received her writing education. She covers human interest and trending news for The Epoch Times.
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