Teen Lands Massive 1058 Pound Blue Marlin Off The Coast of the "Big Island" Hawaii
A teen, fishing off the coast of Kona, Hawaii reeled in a 1,058-pound marlin that he said was an individual achievement, but about 300 pounds short of a world record. Kai Rizzuto, 16 year old New Yorker, said he was fishing off a charter boat while vacationing with his grandpa on Hawaii's Big Island when he hooked this massive fish.
The teen struggled for 30 minutes or so with the marlin weighing 1,058 pounds, which is an average of 5 plus times the weight of an adult male. Kai said the largest fish he landed prior to Wednesday was only a measly 55 pounds.
In an interview with CNN the teen said "It was jumping straight out of the water, fully breached, shaking its head trying to free itself. I was really praying and hoping that nothing would happen to this fish and that it wouldn't break off the line."
"For my first one to be a grander, it's just an unreal experience," Rizzuto told NBC News of the marlin. Jim Rizzuto, the boy's grandfather, pointed out "This fish came to the boat dead, upside down on its back, there was no chance of reviving it. By and large, we try and release every blue marlin we can as a conservation measure, but sometimes in a hard fight the fish dies and there is nothing you can do.".
After the ceremony at the docks, the grandfather said the marlin will be portioned out to feed "a couple of hundred people. Blue marlin is a high-quality protein. They have been eaten here forever, so when we get a very special fish like this, you turn it over to a fish cutter that makes sure everyone who wants a piece gets a piece."
Here is the irony, this marlin was about 300 pounds shy of the International Game Fish Association's 1982 world record, which was caught in Kaaiwi Point only about 10 miles from where Kai Rizzuto landed this trophy marlin. Apparently the coast off the Big Island of Hawaii still sports some of the best Blue Marlin fishing in the world.
