Career
This is more successful crossings than any other Australian. From 1975-1979 and for a period in 1980 he held the title of King of the Channel. At the time of his death, only two other people had swum the Channel more often, Alison Streeter and Mike Read (31).
He took up marathon swimming only at the age of 39.
His Channel crossings included three in 10 days in 1980. In 1977 he broke the record for swimming around Alcatraz Island by 23 minutes.
He was a mentor of Susie Maroney, and led her on her first Channel crossing when she was 15. He was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1998.
He suffered three heart attacks and a stroke, and had undergone heart surgery.
He had a fourth heart attack while swimming on 29 December 1999. He went into a coma, was admitted to the Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney, and died there the following evening. The former Heffron Park Pool was renamed in Des Renford"s honour on 1 March 2000 as the Des Renford Aquatic Centre.