AUSAustralia

Shelley Taylor-Smith

1990 Channel solo · 1997 three-way relay team member

Source country: Australia (AUS in the International Swimming Hall of Fame).
Born: 3 August 1961; Perth background.
Channel solo: 9:27, England to France, 1990.
World championship medals: 25 km gold in Perth, 1991; bronze in Rome, 1994.
Channel relay: One of six swimmers in a continuous 1997 three-way crossing.
Public honour: Transperth named MV Shelley Taylor-Smith in 1997.

Biography

Shelley Taylor-Smith is an Australian marathon swimmer from Perth who built a professional racing career before moving into coaching and sport administration. The Women's Museum of Australia gives her birth date as 3 August 1961. Her Hall of Fame biography traces her introduction to marathon swimming to the University of Arkansas in 1983 and her first professional race to 1985.

In 1990 she completed an England-to-France Channel solo in 9 hours 27 minutes. The museum recognises her as the first West Australian to make a solo crossing. She subsequently won the women's 25-kilometre world title at Perth in 1991 and earned world championship bronze at Rome in 1994. Her 1995 Manhattan Island victory was another major achievement in a career described by the International Swimming Hall of Fame as seven-time world champion.

Taylor-Smith returned to the Channel as part of a six-person Western Australian team in 1997. A contemporary government report names all six swimmers and records their continuous triple crossing in 32 hours 50 minutes, including difficult conditions on the third leg. That elapsed time belongs to the team.

She retired from professional competition in 1998. Her later work included athlete representation, open-water administration and Champion Mindset coaching. A Transperth ferry named for her in 1997 reflects her recognition beyond swimming.

Selected Channel swim records

1990 England-to-France solo

Ratifying body's record checked

Recorded swim date · Monday, 27 August 1990 · Start or finish date not specified by the source

Elapsed swim time · 9h 27m

Duration of the complete swim

Started · Exact start date not confirmed · Clock time not confirmed

Finished · Exact finish date not confirmed · Clock time not confirmed

Format · Solo · 1-way

Direction · England → France

Ratification / historical recognition · Channel Swimming Association

How this record was checked

CSA successful-swim record 2862 identifies Shelley Taylor-Smith, Australia, solo one-way England to France, 1990 and 09:27. Dover.UK.com's 1990 selected row 3 supplies 27 August. The museum's named athlete profile independently connects her to the 1990 solo. Date retained as a generic register date; original observer log and clocks not inspected.

Channel Swimming Association: Shelley Taylor-Smith, 1990

Checked 2026-10-31

Supports · Published successful Australia solo, England to France, 1990, 09:27.

Limitations · The CSA individual record supplies year only.

Dover.UK.com: successful swims in 1990

Checked 2026-10-31

Supports · Selected Shelley Taylor-Smith row: 27 August 1990, 9:27, Australia.

Limitations · Secondary generic swim date; no departure/arrival date or clock established.

Women's Museum of Australia: Shelley Taylor-Smith

Checked 2026-10-31

Supports · Birth date, first West Australian solo crossing, world championship medals, Manhattan win, 1997 triple relay and ferry honour.

Limitations · Historical profile; undated present-tense board appointments are not treated as current.

Western Australian three-way relay

Published account checked

Six-person relay: 32:50 is the team's continuous three-way time. Murray Johnston was named separately as reserve.

Western Australian marathon swimmers · Shelley Taylor-Smith · Peter Blackmore · Barbara Pellick · Mark Dawson · Nancy Warnock · Gary Bradley

Team elapsed time · 32h 50m

Duration of the team’s complete swim

Started · Exact start date not confirmed · Clock time not confirmed

Finished · Exact finish date not confirmed · Clock time not confirmed

Timing note · The 4 September 1997 government statement reports completion the previous night. No exact swim date, phase clock or time zone is assigned from that relative wording.

Format · Relay · 3-way

Direction · Not recorded here

Conditions · The government report describes difficult conditions on the third crossing.

How this record was checked

Western Australian Government statement dated 4/9/97, completion and roster paragraphs, explicitly names Shelley Taylor-Smith among six swimmers and gives a completed triple crossing in 32 hours 50 minutes. The Women's Museum profile separately lists her 1997 triple-crossing relay. TeamName is the government's descriptive label, not an asserted formal registered nickname. Reserve Murray Johnston is excluded from the six-person roster. One continuous performance; no individual legs or federation decision inspected.

Western Australian Government: Channel triple-crossing commendation, 4 September 1997

Checked 2026-10-31

Supports · Contemporary completion report: six named swimmers including Shelley Taylor-Smith, three-way crossing, 32 hours 50 minutes; Murray Johnston identified separately as reserve.

Limitations · No federation decision, individual leg times or exact phase dates established. Publication date is not used as swim date.

Women's Museum of Australia: Shelley Taylor-Smith

Checked 2026-10-31

Supports · Birth date, first West Australian solo crossing, world championship medals, Manhattan win, 1997 triple relay and ferry honour.

Limitations · Historical profile; undated present-tense board appointments are not treated as current.

Career milestones

Marathon swimming introduction

1983

Her Hall of Fame biography places her introduction to the discipline at the University of Arkansas.

Channel solo

Monday, 27 August 1990

Dover's dated row corroborates the CSA's successful 9:27 crossing.

World 25 km champion

1991

Won the world championship gold medal in Perth.

World championship bronze

1994

Finished with the bronze medal over 25 km in Rome.

Three-way Channel relay

1997

Named in the six-swimmer Western Australian team whose completed triple crossing was reported by the state government.

Professional retirement

1998

The Hall of Fame records the end of her professional racing career.

Recordings & media

Shelley Taylor-Smith — Hall of Fame athlete biography

Open media page

Athlete media

Named biographical profile from the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Link checked 2026-10-31

English Channel questions

Which English Channel swims are included for Shelley Taylor-Smith?: This profile includes 1 selected solo performance and 1 named relay participation for Shelley Taylor-Smith. It is a selected history, not a complete career total. A continuous multi-way swim counts as one performance.
When was Shelley Taylor-Smith’s featured English Channel swim?: The featured swim is recorded on Monday, 27 August 1990. The source does not establish whether that date means departure or arrival.
How long did Shelley Taylor-Smith’s featured Channel swim take?: The featured solo crossing has a published elapsed time of 9 hours and 27 minutes.

Supports · Contemporary completion report: six named swimmers including Shelley Taylor-Smith, three-way crossing, 32 hours 50 minutes; Murray Johnston identified separately as reserve.

Limitations · No federation decision, individual leg times or exact phase dates established. Publication date is not used as swim date.

Latest source review 2026-10-31.