Shark to front up live to get medal (9)
I believe the answer is:
wobbegong
'shark' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'to front up live to get medal' is the wordplay.
'to front' becomes 'bow' (the bow is the front of a ship).
'up' says the letters should be written in reverse (in down clue: letters go upwards).
'live' becomes 'be' (synonyms).
'to get' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'medal' becomes 'gong' (informal term for a medal or prize).
'bow' in reverse letter order is 'wob'.
'wob'+'be'+'gong'='WOBBEGONG'
(Other definitions for wobbegong that I've seen before include "shark" , "Swimmer" .)