Geraldton marathon swimmer Joanne Norman becomes first Aussie woman to finish prestigious Oceans Seven crown

Geraldton marathon swimmer Joanne Norman has officially become the first Australian woman to tackle some of the world’s toughest channels and complete the prestigious Oceans Seven challenge earlier this month. She joins an elite class of 43 swimmers who have achieved the seven-leg feat after starting it in July 2021 with her successful English Channel crossing, finishing in 12hr. 42min. Almost five years later, after countless hours of training in the pool and oceans, early 4am wake-ups and intense gym sessions, Norman wrapped up her journey at the Molakai Channel in Hawaii in 14:15 to stamp her name in the history books at 54 years old. “None of it was ever about records of having a name in places. That was not what this was all about,” she said. “It was only last year I realised that had I got to complete all these, I would be the first Australian woman and I was like ‘that’s super significant’. “No one can ever take away from you being the first, they can take times away and things like that, but I’ll always be number one which is a massive achievement.” Her recent swim in Hawaii was her second attempt after a cookiecutter shark bite forced her to abort her first 12 months ago. But Norman said the biggest challenge was the North Channel, a 35km stretch between Ireland and Scotland and often regarded as the most difficult leg of the Oceans Seven due to its treacherous conditions. “The water is notoriously cold and there’s lion’s mane jellyfish there,” she said. “I live in the desert and we don’t get water temperatures under 22C and I needed to prepare for anything between 12C and 16C. There was a really big difference of water temperature. “That was one of the hardest because I swum it latest in the year. While the water was actually only 14C, the outside temperature was a nine, with a feels like of five, so it was actually really really cold.“ She successfully conquered the North Channel in 13:08 in September 2024. In October 2023, Norman completed the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming after completing the English Channel, Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco and the Catalina Channel in Southern California, before deciding to pursue the Oceans Seven. After training for three months, she tackled the Cook Strait in New Zealand, completing the crossing in 08:03 in a tandem swim with Mark Sowerby — another open water swimmer from the Gold Coast. Her sixth swim was across the Tsugaru Strait between the Japanese Islands of Aomori and Hokkaido, finishing in 13:17 — just four months after being bitten by a shark during her first Molakai crossing attempt. On March 1, Norman crossed the final finish line on an Oahu beach after finishing her second attempt at crossing the Molakai Channel, officially becoming the sixth Australian — and the first Australian woman, to complete the Oceans Seven. “Funnily enough, I felt a bit deflated,” she said. “It wasn’t the same as the movie reel that was going on in my head, that I would be celebrating on the beach and going crazy. That’s probably true for a lot of athletes when they get to the last part. “While I’m really happy and super proud of myself, I think that will come in a few weeks.” Based in Abu Dhabi, Norman also said the ongoing conflict in the Middle East made it difficult to celebrate because her “second home is under fire” and she had to deal with the logistics of returning home. However, this hasn’t lowered Norman’s sights on her next challenge — a gruelling 110km swim, scheduled to take place in the UAE in November. But for now, she’s spending the next six weeks recovering, sleeping in and being around her husband before she gets back into training in May. “Now, I’m living my best life as an athlete, probably more so than what I did when I was younger,” she said. “It all comes down to the work that you’re prepared to put in to do something and achieve something as big as this. “There’s a lot of hard work that goes with it.” Back home in Geraldton, Norman’s mother Robin Davies said she was “prouder than anyone could ever know” of her daughter’s achievement. “It’s a great achievement, and having watched her from a tiny child swimming and to have achieved what she’s achieved is just mind-blowing,” she said. “Sadly her dad passed away last year, so he wasn’t here to see her finish it, but I know he was extremely proud of what she had done up until that stage too.”