A Swiss tourist has been identified as the courageous individual who attempted to fend off a shark during a tragic attack on his girlfriend at a beach on New South Wales’ Mid North Coast.

Lucas Schindler, aged 26, and his girlfriend, Olivia Mulheim, 25, were enjoying their time at Kylies Beach, located south of Port Macquarie, when the unfortunate incident occurred.

Lucas, a dedicated marathon runner who recently completed the Sydney Marathon in August, now faces a daunting recovery after the encounter. The attack left him with serious injuries to his leg, casting doubts on his ability to walk again.

The pair had entered the waters at dawn, hoping to capture footage of a dolphin pod as their vacation neared its end. Tragically, their idyllic morning was disrupted by the unexpected presence of a bull shark.

The couple entered the water yesterday at dawn to film a pod of dolphins as they neared the end of their holiday.

“Everyone was talking about it yesterday, it’s just terrible,” a resident told 9News.

“My child was camping out here last week, swimming. I just couldn’t imagine how everyone’s feeling.”

“So he’s in a whole world of hurt, obviously not just from his injury, but, you know, emotionally he’s going to be really struggling,” shark attack survivor David Pearson said.

Pearson has been a member of a group helping people overcome the challenges following a shark attack.

”We’re here to try and help people understand life after an attack, because it’s not an easy journey.”

The beaches around Crowdy Bay were closed today and could remain that way over the weekend.

Investigations into finding the shark responsible for the attack continue as Fisheries NSW has deployed half a dozen drum lines across the beach.

Surf Life Saving is deploying drones and scanning for any sharks.

Since the attack, no sharks have been spotted in the area.