A man is in a critical condition after being pulled from the water at Bondi, where he and two others got caught in a rip.

The man was taking a dip to cool off around 7.30pm Thursday, when he and two others got into trouble.

They were pulled from the water and witnesses began CPR on the 21-year-old.

He was taken to hospital, where he remains, in a critical condition.

helicopter flying over #bondibeach helping to clear the crowds surrounding the life saving efforts at the beach after swimmers pulled out of the rip pic.twitter.com/dgTUsE9HCT

— Sam Dee (@cultdiva8) January 16, 2019

Surf Life Saving New South Wales’s Liam Howitt says it’s a sad reminder swimmers need to be able to identify a rip.

The other two men, both aged 20, were also transported to hospital in a stable condition and have since been released.

Image: Twitter