Meet Australia's OLDEST LIFESAVER!

AT 88, BILLY RYAN HAS NO PLANS ON HANGING UP HIS GOGGLES

- Ruth McCarthy

Strapping on his swim cap and diving into the waves is a constant joy for Billy Ryan, who has been a surf lifesaver for over seven decades.

Billy, now 88, spent his teenage years in the water swimming at Maroubra Beach in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs. He then got his Bronze Medallion to become a surf lifesaver at 17, and went on to work as a Beach Inspector in his twenties.

“It’s changed so much since I started,” Billy tells New Idea. “There were no tubes, boards, jet skis or radios then.

“All we had were ropes and reels. Sometimes we just had to swim out on our own to save a struggling swimmer.”