Ex-Dolphins fullback swims nine miles to safety after boat accident

The U.S. Coast Guard says that former Miami Dolphins fullback Rob Konrad swam nine miles back to shore after falling off his fishing boat.

SI Wire | Jan 9, 2015

Ex-Dolphins fullback swims nine miles to safety after boat accident /

The U.S. Coast Guard says that former Miami Dolphins fullback Rob Konrad swam nine miles back to shore after falling off his fishing boat, reports the Associated Press.

Konrad had gone fishing alone Wednesday after being dropped off at a Boca Raton, Fla. dock. When Konrad failed to show up to dinner with his friends, the Coast Guard was called, sending a helicopter to look for him.

Athletes on Boats

Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union

Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union showed off their beach bods while on a boat in July 2015. Here are some other instances of sports figures on boats.

Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova smiles as she holds the singles trophy after the 2008 Australian Open.

Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal sails on a Tuiga yacht in 2014 during the Monte Carlo ATP Masters tennis tournament.

Larry Bird

Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics enjoying fishing on the lake while at rookie camp in Boston.

Julio Jones

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Derek Jeter

The Yankees captain steers a boat near Tampa in 2005. Jeter piloted New York to five World Series titles during his career.

Mike Trout

@JessTara

Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods was said to be asking $25 million for his aptly named yacht, which was reportedly a wedding gift for ex-wife Elin Nordegren.

Joe Thomas

Cleveland Browns first found draft pick Joe Thomas hands over a fish that was caught on a fishing charter in 2007. Thomas spent day fishing with his dad instead of attending the football draft in New York, and was selected third overall by the Browns.

Mariano Rivera

Rivera sits alone on the boat Daniyoel in Panama in February 1997. Rivera was preparing for his first season as Yankees closer.

James Buster Douglas

The former heavyweight champion fishes on his boat in Key West in 1993. More than three years earlier, Douglas had knocked out unbeaten champion Mike Tyson to stun the boxing community.

LaDainian Tomlinson

The Chargers running back tries to reel one in during a fishing trip on the San Diego Bay with kids from his Touching Lives Foundation in 2007.

Mark Spitz

The Olympic swimmer and his fiancee, Susan Weiner, posed for a Sports Illustrated cover shot on their boat, Sumark 7. Spitz was less than a year removed from his record-setting performance at the Munich Olympics in 1972.

Bo Jackson

Bo Jackson on his boat on the Des Plaines River in Illinois, spearing fish with a cross-bow in 2003.

Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez

The power-hitting, rifle-armed catcher relaxes on his boat in December 2001. As the graphic on the boat references, Rodriguez was the 1999 American League MVP after hitting .332 with a career-high 35 home runs. The 14-time All-Star was a member of the 2003 World Series champion Marlins.

Gary Payton

Jeffery A. Salter for Sports Illustrated

The then-NBA guard (right) stands with his posse on "The Glove," which comes from the nickname he earned for his defensive presence.

Mark McGwire

In the January before he captivated the baseball world by breaking Roger Maris' home run record, McGwire sits on his boat in Huntington Harbor, Calif.

Edgerrin James

The Indianapolis Colts running back steers his boat near Miami in 2001.

Kirby Puckett

The former Twins star rides in his fishing boat in 1997. The 2001 Hall of Fame inductee hit .316 in his career but was forced to retire before the 1996 season due to loss of vision in his right eye from glaucoma.

Jimmy Johnson

After two years as a TV analyst, Jimmy Johnson returned to coaching with the Miami Dolphins in 1996. In this photo taken that year, Johnson sits on his boat.

Greg Norman

You can put the Shark on the water, but you can't take his irons away. The Australian golfer takes some practice swings on the back of his yacht on Sydney Harbour in May 2006 as he was promoting that season's Australian Open.

Jay Buhner

In the midst of the best three-year run in his career, Seattle Mariners slugger Jay Buhner fishes for trout. Seen here in 1996, Buhner would hit 124 home runs during the span from 1995 to 1997.

Andres Thomas

A free-swinging shortstop for the Atlanta Braves, Thomas relaxes on a boat during a photo shoot in his hometown of Boca Chica, Dominican Republic. Thomas played for Atlanta from 1985 to 1990, hitting .234 with 42 home runs in his career.

Moises & Felipe Alou

Expos manager Felipe and his son Moises, an outfielder, sit on a fishing boat in the off-season of what-could-have-beens. Montreal had a league-best record of 74-40 when a strike cut off the season without a World Series in 1994.

Barry Foster

In the summer after his best professional season, Steelers' running back Barry Foster, then 24, fishes near Grand Prairie, Texas. Foster had earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 1992 after rushing for 1,690 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Chuck Finley

The Angels' pitcher cruises in a motorboat with his girlfriend, White Snake video girl Tawny Kitaen. They were married from 1997 to 2002, but Finley filed for divorce three days after Kitaen was arrested for domestic abuse.

Davey Johnson

The former Baltimore Orioles manager casts his line at a 1997 fishing tournament and fundraiser for cystic fibrosis research. Three days before this photo was taken, Johnson had been named American League manager of the year.

Goose Gossage

The 2008 Hall of Fame inductee fishes near Colorado Springs in August 1994, during the last season of his career. Gossage won 124 games and recorded 310 saves during his career.

Kevin Kolb

The then-Eagles quarterback fishes for bass in Lake Granbury in Granbury, Texas, in the 2010 off-season.

Mark O'Meara

The golfer drives his boat near Orlando in 1998, the best year of his PGA career.

Mike Alstott

Mike Alstott of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers baiting line in 1997.

Michelle Kwan

The two-time Olympic medalist and five-time world champion fishing with her father, Danny, and brother Ron in 1997. At that time, Kwan was still a year away from her first Olympic appearance -- a silver medal at the Nagano Olympics. In 2002, she added a bronze.

Robert Allenby

Professional golfer Robert Allenby on his fishing boat in 2008.

2008 U.S. Men's Olympic team

Before taking gold in Beijing, the Redeem Team took a boat tour near the Statue of Liberty as part of a promotional trip.

Andy Murray

The British tennis star took a ride in front of the Burj Al Arab Hotel during the Emirates Dubai ATP Tennis Championship in 2009.

Adam Dunn

Adam Dunn of the Cincinnati Reds fishing off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in 2005.

Bob Brown

Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images

Former Green Bay Packers player Bob Brown fishing in 1985.

Boston Red Sox

Wendy Maeda/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

A duck boat in the rolling rally parade celebrating the Boston Red Sox's World Series victory in 2004.

Boston Red Sox

Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Duck Boats carry the World Series Champions on the Charles River as the Boston Red Sox celebrate their World Series victory in 2013.

Brian Grant

Brian Grant of the Miami Heat savors the moment after winning an hour-long fight with a sailfish off the coast of Florida.

Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves

Houston Astros' Craig Biggio, center, Wade Miller, Brad Ausmus and Ricky Stone during the 1st Annual Walt Disney World Recreation Spring Training Bass Classic.

Greg Biffle

Gene Duncan/Walt Disney World/Getty Images

NASCAR driver Greg Biffle reels in a largemouth bass at the Walt Disney World Resort in 2003. Biffle was among the NASCAR drivers competing in the CITGO Jeff Burton Celebrity Challenge "Hot Rods and Reels" fishing competition.

John Riggins

John Riggins of Washington Redskins fishing in Lawrence, Kan., in 1983.

Randy White

Randy White of Dallas Cowboys fishing for bass in Landenberg, Penn., in 1984.

Willie Mitchell

Willie Mitchell of the Los Angeles Kings goes fishing with the Stanley Cup in Telegraph Cove, British Columbia. Mitchell took the Stanley Cup to his hometown of Port McNeill, B.C. for his one-day celebration with the prized trophy.

Whitey Herzog out in a fishing boat in 1985.

Jack Nicklaus

Jack Nicklaus tries his hand at fishing on the Birnam Hotel stretch of the River Tay, near Dunkeld in Perthshire. He was taking a day off from practicing for the 1968 Open Golf Championship at Carnoustie.

Mickey Mantle

The Yankees slugger fishes in Florida with his son, Mickey Jr., in February 1968. Mantle was entering the final season of his baseball career, where the former slugger would hit a career-worst .237 with 18 home runs.

Joe DiMaggio

DiMaggio, right, with his brother, Mike, on the family fishing boat in San Francisco in October 1936. The Yankee Clipper was coming off a rookie season in which he hit .323 with 29 home runs as the New York won the first of four straight World Series titles. The following summer, DiMaggio hit a career-high 46 home runs.

Ted Williams

When each season would end, the Red Sox legend would slip away to Florida to fish. His love of fishing for sailfish may have surpassed even his passion for baseball.

Larry Froeber/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth bag a fish in 1938.

According to the Coast Guard, Konrad fell from the 36-foot boat and he started to swim toward shore, spending 10 to 12 hours in the water. He reached the shore and contacted the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, which found him at 4:40 a.m. ET on Thursday morning.

Konrad, 38, was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for possible hypothermia and released.

Konrad played college football at Syracuse and was selected in the second round of the 1999 NFL Draft by the Dolphins. He finished his six-year career with 114 rushing yards, 854 receiving yards and seven total touchdowns.

- Scooby Axson

Published Jan 9, 2015

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