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3rd January 2024
12:00pm GMT
A British angler managed to reel in a 'goldfish' as heavy as a 10-year-old child whilst fishing in a lake in France.
Andy Hackett managed to land the orange monster in Bluewater Lakes in the Champagne region of France after a 25 minute battle with the beast.
The fish, known as The Carrot, is a hybrid of a leather carp and a koi carp, and had been introduced to the lake 20 years ago.
The Carrot has been a much-sought after catch for plenty of anglers, but many had tried and failed to reel in the elusive marine giant over the years.
When he did land the fish, Andy needed two hands to hold it, and there were concerns over whether there were any scales big enough to weigh it, the BBC reports.
But eventually, they were able to weight in the orange giant at a huge 30kg (67 pounds).
The Carrot was then released back into the lake for other anglers to try and conquer.
Speaking about his catch, Andy, from Worcestershire, said: "With normal fish, you struggle to see them if they're just under the surface, but The Carrot is obviously bright orange so you can't miss it.
"[But] it's a much sought-after fish, not many people have caught it, it's quite elusive.
"I always knew The Carrot was there but never thought I would catch it."
The fish had been introduced to the lakes by Jason Cowler two decades previously, to give anglers "something different" to fish for.
The goldfish commonly kept as pets usually only grow to a few inches in length. But they are part of the carp family, and these can grow to huge sizes.
Since Andy caught The Carrot in 2022, a number of others have managed to claim the prized scalp, with Bluewater sharing each triumph on their Facebook page.
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