by He’ll need a bigger bowl.
A British fisherman became the envy of anglers around the world after reeling in a nearly 70-pound goldfish – possibly the world’s largest. A Facebook post describing the catch of his life is currently exploding on Facebook.
Andy Hackett, 42, landed the giant aptly nicknamed ‘The Carrot’ while fishing the Bluewater Lakes in Champagne, France, one of the world’s leading carp fisheries, the Daily Mail reported.
“I always knew The Carrot was in there, but I never thought I’d catch it,” said Hackett, a Worcestershire-based company director, of the wannabe Goldzilla.
The Fanta-colored freak is not a goldfish per se, but a hybrid of leather carp and koi carp, ornamental fish commonly found in ponds. This particular specimen, reportedly 20 years old, was apparently introduced to the lakes 15 years ago “as something else for anglers to try to catch,” Blue Water Lakes spokesman Jason Cowler told USA Today.
“It’s grown and grown since then, but it doesn’t come out often,” he said. “She’s very elusive.”
The carrot had largely evaded capture until earlier this month when it was hooked by Hackett.
“‘I knew it was a big fish when it took my bait and paced it back and forth and up and down,” the angler recalled. “Then it came to the surface 30 or 40 meters away and I saw it was orange.
“It was brilliant to catch, but it was also pure luck,” added Hackett, who spent a whopping 25 minutes capturing the monster.
The carrot weighed in at 67.4 pounds — that’s 30 pounds heavier than what was previously thought to be the world’s largest goldfish, caught by Minnesota resident Jason Fugate in 2019.
After landing his prize, Hackett posed for photos and released the animal back into the lake. The Brit then duly celebrated his colorful catch with a cup of tea.
“Congratulations to Andy on a great catch,” said Cowler, who reported that The Carrot is currently in “excellent health and condition.”
In a similarly miraculous catch in 2019, a Kentucky fisherman snatched a 20-pound koi fish while using just a biscuit for bait.
