Hi, it’s Adrian Bo here, and today I’m on the corner of Jersey Road and Robey Street in Maroubra, outside the local institution, the Des Renford Aquatic Centre, to talk about the life of the legend that the centre was named after in the year 2000. Des Renford was born in 1927 and lived his whole life in Maroubra. At the age of 16, he joined the Navy and saw service in Japan towards the end of the Second World War. A surf lifesaver and surfer, he earned a living in various ways, including being a butcher, a bookie, an advertising salesman, and owned a bar. There are other suggestions he also managed rocker Johnny O’Keeffe for a while, as they were cousins. Johnny O’Keeffe was also an ex Waverley College boy, just like myself. In 1954, he was decorated for his part in the rescue of three fishermen in shark-infested waters. At the age of 39, he was challenged by journalist friend Jack Ayling to enter a 40-kilometre race across Port Phillip Bay. This started a career in long-distance swimming, and over the next decade, he won a range of titles, including becoming known as the “King of the Channel” between 1975 and 1980, during which time he completed 16 crossings of the English Channel. In total, he completed 19 English Channel crossings, more than any other Australian, and was widely considered the best open-water distance swimmer in the world for his era.

An English Channel crossing is run strictly by the Channel Swimming Association. It is approximately 21 miles, depending on how straight your swim, which can be dictated by tides and speed; evening water temperatures can be as low as eight degrees, even in the English spring. The good news being that the English Channel is too cold for sharks. In 1977, Des agreed to take on one of his main rivals, Englishman Kevin Murphy, in a unique and extraordinary long-distance swimming challenge. It involved three legs, the first being a 10-mile race across the Sydney Harbour from Manly to the Opera House in shark cages, not surprisingly, which was won by Murphy. The second leg was a channel crossing race, won by Renford. The third leg was a race across the freezing Loch Ness. After 6 1/2 hours, Renford was pulled out of the water after falling unconscious. Murphy, who had trained in colder waters, managed another 2 1/2 hours but also failed to complete the race, so they declared the challenge an honourable draw. They made a fantastic documentary of this challenge, which I would urge any local to watch, so I’ll put a link below this post with the video. Renford later took on a 134-kilometer swim from Newcastle to Sydney in 1981, but his shark-proof cage sank in a storm off Terrigal after he had been in the water for 13 hours. Previously, in 1974, he swam 93 kilometres from Watson’s Bay to North Woolongong Harbour in just over 27 hours. He was made an OAM and awarded an MBE and was a rare Australian to receive the Papal Knighthood from Pope John Paul II.

Des’ son Michael also had an extraordinary middle-age epiphany with long-distance swimming at the age of 45, eventually becoming a rare Aussie to complete the long-distance open-water swimming Triple Crown, the Triple Crown being a 48.5 km swim around Manhattan Island in New York, crossing the 33 km of the English Channel and crossing the 32.5 Km Catalina Island and the California coast. He did it all with his dad’s wedding ring tied to his swimming trunks. Quite extraordinary stories of extraordinary people, and I hope locals now appreciate the significance of Des Renford’s name on the local sporting institution here, the renaming having happened 21 years ago. I’ve been selling properties in real estate in the ‘Bra for 32 years. Some of my more recent sales include 907 Anzac Parade, a four-bedroom house for over $2 million, 73 Torrington Road, a four-bedroom semi for just under $3 million, 46A at 17 Green Street, a one-bedroom unit for $635,000 and 68 Marine Parade, a four-bedroom semi for $3.85 million. Of course, we have another sporting institution about to move in next door to the Des Renford Aquatic Centre here, as the mighty Rabbitohs will be moving their new base to the new Heffron Centre development. Hopefully, the players will get to know and be inspired by the history of Des Renford. I hope you’ve found the Des Renford story interesting. I think it’s vital we keep the history and stories of our local Maroubra, Coogee, Randwick legends alive. Please enjoy the cooler temperatures and the lovely blue skies, and always remember, your home is worth more with Adrian Bo.